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OF  CALIFORNIA 

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A    SPOIL    OF    OFFICE 


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Jason  Edwards* 

A  Spoil  of  Office, 

A  Member  of  the  Third  House. 


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D.  APPLETON  &  COMPANY,  NEW  YORK. 


A  SPOIL  OF  OFFICE 

A  STORY  OF  THE  MODERN  WEST 


BY    HAMLIN    GARLAND 

AUTHOR  OF  JASON  EDWARDS,  A 
MEMBER  OF  THE  THIRD  HOUSE, 
A  LITTLE  NORSK,  ETC.  :  :  :  : 


NEW    AND    REVISED    EDITION 


NEW  YORK 

D.    APPLETON    AND    COMPANY 
M  DCCC  XCVII 


Copyright,  1897,  by 
D.  APPLETON  AND   COMPANY 


Copyright,  1892,  by  Hamlin  Garland 


library 

PS 


TO 

WILLIAM    DEAN    HOWELLS, 

THE   FOREMOST   HISTORIAN   OF  OUR  COMMON   LIVES 
AND    THE    MOST    VITAL    FIGURE    IN    OUR    LITERATURE, 

I   DEDICATE   THIS   STUDY 

OF   THE    GREAT    MIDDLE    WEST, 

ITS   CONTEMPORARY   LIFE   AND   LANDSCAPE. 


11747! 5 


PREFACE  TO  THE  NEW  EDITION. 


IN  this  story  of  "  A  Spoil  of  Office "  it  was 
my  intention  to  treat  life  as  it  would  present 
itself  to  a  young-  Western  man  of  humble  con 
dition,  who  should  set  himself  to  the  task  of 
winning  a  political  success.  I  have  therefore 
maintained  with  considerable  care  the  point  of 
view  of  Bradley  Talcott.  Such  a  design  loses 
in  variety  but  gains,  it  seems  to  me,  in  unity  and 
continuity  of  movement. 

It  has  one  marked  disadvantage,  however :  it 
is  apt  to  be  misunderstood  by  the  reader  who 
may  take  the  characters,  events,  and  theories, 
judged  by  the  central  figure,  to  be  the  author's 
estimate.  To  illustrate :  Ida  Wilbur  is  pre 
sented  as  she  appeared  to  Bradley  Talcott,  and 
not  as  the  reader  would  see  her,  and  not  as  the 
author  would  have  delineated  her  had  she  been 
taken  as  the  central  fig-ure  of  the  book.  This 


viii  PREFACE    TO    THE  NEW  EDITION. 

explanatory  word  seemed  needed  ;  being  given, 
I  leave  its  working  out  to  the  reader. 

The  three  great  movements  of  the  American 
farmer,  herein  used  as  background — the  Grange, 
the  Alliance,  and  the  People's  party — seem  to  me 
to  be  as  legitimate  subjects  for  fiction  as  any 
war  or  crusade.  They  came  in  impulses  with 
mightiest  enthusiasms,  they  died  out  like  waves 
upon  the  beach  ;  but  the  power  which  origi 
nated  them  did  not  die  ;  it  will  return  in  differ 
ent  forms  again  and  again,  so  long  as  the  love  of 
liberty  and  the  hatred  of  injustice  live  in  the 
hearts  of  men  and  women. 

What  the  next  movement  will  be  I  do  not 
know ;  but  when  it  comes,  Bradley  Talcott  and 
Ida  his  wife  will  be  foremost  among  its  leaders. 

HAM  LIN  GARLAND. 

CHICAGO,  May,  i8gf. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

I. — THE  GRANGE  PICNIC          ......        I 

II. — THE   DINNER   UNDER   THE   OAK          .  .  .  -17 

III. — BRADLEY  RESOLVES  TO  GO  TO  SCHOOL         .        .    26 

IV. — TRIALS  AT  SCHOOL 38 

V — BRADLEY  RISES  TO  ADDRESS  THE  CARTHAGINIANS    58 
VI. — BRADLEY  ATTENDS  A  CONVENTION        .        .        .78 

VII. — THE   FARMERS   OUST  THE   RING         .  .  .  .87 

VIII. — BRADLEY  ATTACKS  NETTIE'S  FATHER    .        .        -95 
IX. — BRADLEY  MEETS  MRS.  BROWN       ....  102 

X. — A   COUNTRY   POLLING    PLACE Ill 

XI. — STUDYING  WITH  THE  JUDGE 122 

XII.— THE  JUDGE  ADVISES  BRADLEY      .        .        .        .129 

XIII. — BRADLEY  SEES  IDA  AGAIN 136 

XIV. — BRADLEY  CHANGES  HIS  POLITICS  .        .        .        .158 

XV. — HOME  AGAIN   WITH   THE   JUDGE       ....    169 

XVI. — NOMINATION 180 

XVII. — ELECTION 195 

XVIII. — DON'T  BLOW  OUT  THE  GAS 203 

XIX. — CARGILL  TAKES  BRADLEY  IN  HAND       .        .        .  218 

XX. — AT  THE  STATE  HOUSE 232 

XXI. — BRADLEY  AND  CARGILL  CALL  ON  IDA  .        .        .  242 

XXII.— THE  JUDGE  PLANS  A  NEW   CAMPAIGN     .  .          .253 

ix 


x  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

XXIII. — ON  TO  WASHINGTON 265 

XXIV. — RADBOURN  SHOWS  BRADLEY  ABOUT  THE  CAPI 
TAL     .  272 

XXV. — IDA  COMES  INTO  HIS  LIFE  AGAIN        .        .        .  289 

XXVI. — CONGRESSIONAL  LIFE 296 

XXVII. — BRADLEY'S  LONG-CHERISHED  HOPE  VANISHES     .  306 

XXVIII. — SPRING  CONVENTIONS 314 

XXIX. — BRADLEY  DISCOURAGED 327 

XXX. — THE   GREAT   ROUND-UP   AT   CHIQUITA  .  .    334 

XXXI. — IDA  SHOWS  BRADLEY  THE  WAY  OUT         .        .  350 
XXXII. — CONCLUSION.     WASHINGTON  AGAIN     .        .        .  367 


A  SPOIL   OF   OFFICE. 


I. 

THE    GRANGE   PICNIC. 

EARLY  in  the  cool  hush  of  a  June  morning 
in  the  seventies,  a  curious  vehicle  left  Farmer 
Councill's  door,  loaded  with  a  merry  group  of 
young  people.  It  was  a  huge  omnibus,  con 
structed  out  of  a  heavy  farm  wagon  and  a  hay 
rack,  and  was  drawn  by  six  horses.  The  driver 
was  Councill's  hired  man,  Bradley  Talcott.  Coun- 
cill  himself  held  between  his  vast  knees  the  staff 
of  a  mighty  flag  in  which  they  all  took  immense 
pride.  The  girls  of  the  grange  had  made  it  for 
the  day. 

Laughter  and  scraps  of  song  and  rude  witti 
cisms  made  the  huge  wagon  a  bouquet  of  smiling 
faces.  Everybody  laughed,  except  Bradley,  who 
sat  with  intent  eyes  and  steady  lips,  his  sinewy 


2  A    SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

brown  hand  holding  the  excited  horses  in  place. 
This  intentness  and  self-mastery  lent  a  sort  of 
majesty  to  his  rough-hewn  face. 

"  Let  'em  out  a  little,  Brad,"  said  Councill. 
"We're  a  little  late." 

Behind  them  came  teams,  before  them  were 
teams,  along  every  lane  of  the  beautiful  upland 
prairie,  teams  were  rolling  rapidly,  all  toward  the 
south.  The  day  was  perfect  summer;  it  made 
the  heart  of  reticent  Bradley  Talcott  ache  with  the 
beauty  of  it  every  time  his  thoughts  went  up  to 
the  blue  sky.  The  larks,  and  bobolinks,  and 
red-wings  made  every  meadow  riotous  with  song, 
and  the  ever-alert  king-birds  and  flickers  flew 
along  from  post  to  post  as  if  to  have  a  part  in  the 
celebration. 

On  every  side  stretched  fields  of  wheat,  green 
as  emerald  and  soft  as  velvet.  Some  of  it  was 
high  enough  already  to  ripple  in  the  soft  winds. 
The  corn  fields  showed  their  yellow- green  rows 
of  timid  shoots,  and  cattle  on  the  pastures  luxuri 
ated  in  the  fullness  of  the  June  grass ;  the  whole 
land  was  at  its  fairest  and  liberalest,  and  it 
seemed  peculiarly  fitting  that  the  farmers  should 
go  on  a  picnic  this  day  of  all  days. 

At  the  four  corners  below  stood  scores  of  other 
wagons,  loaded  to  the  rim  with  men,  women  and 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  3 

children.  Up  and  down  the  line  rode  Milton  Jen 
nings,  the  marshal  of  the  day,  exalted  by  the 
baton  he  held  and  the  gay  red  sash  looped  across 
his  shoulders.  Everywhere  rose  merry  shouts, 
and  far  away  at  the  head  of  the  procession  the 
Burr  Oak  band  was  playing.  All  waited  for  the 
flag  whose  beautiful  folds  flamed  afar  in  the  bright 
sunlight. 

Every  member  of  the  grange  wore  its  quaint 
regalia,  apron,  sash,  and  pouch  of  white,  orange, 
buff  and  red.  Each  grange  was  headed  by  ban 
ners,  worked  in  silk  by  the  patient  fingers  of  the 
women.  Counting  the  banners  there  were  three 
Granges  present — Liberty  Grange,  Meadow  Grange, 
and  Burr  Oak  Grange  at  the  lead  with  the  band. 
The  marshal  of  the  leading  grange  came  charging 
back  along  the  line,  riding  magnificently,  his  fiery 
little  horse  a-foam. 

"  Are  we  all  ready  ? "  he  shouted  like  a  field 
officer. 

"  Yaas !  " 

"  All  ready,  Tom  ?  " 

"  Ready  when  you  are,"  came  the  fusillade  of 
replies. 

He  consulted  a  moment  with  Milton,  the  two 
horses  prancing  with  unwonted  excitement  that 
transformed  them  into  fiery  chargers  of  romance, 


4  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

in  the  eyes  of  the  boys  and  girls,  just  as  the  sash 
and  baton  transfigured  Milton  into  something 
martial. 

"All  ready  there!"  shouted  the  marshals  with 
grandiloquent  gestures  of  their  be-ribboned  rods, 
the  band  blared  out  again  and  the  teams  began 
to  move  toward  the  west.  The  men  stood  up  to 
look  ahead,  while  the  boys  in  the  back  end  of  the 
wagons  craned  perilously  over  the  edge  of  the 
box  to  see  how  long  the  line  was.  It  -seemed 
enormous  to  them,  and  their  admiration  of  the 
marshals  broke  forth  in  shrill  cries  of  primitive 
wildness. 

Many  of  the  young  fellows  had  hired  at  ruinous 
expense  the  carriages  in  which  they  sat  with  their 
girls,  wearing  a  quiet  air  of  aristocratic  reserve 
which  did  not  allow  them  to  shout  sarcasms  at 
Milton,  when  his  horse  broke  into  a  trot  and 
jounced  him  up  and  down  till  his  hat  flew  off. 
But  mainly  the  young  people  were  in  huge  bovv- 
ered  lumber  wagons  in  wildly  hilarious  groups. 
The  girls  in  their  simple  white  dresses  tied  with 
blue  ribbon  at  the  waist,  and  the  boys  in  their 
thick  woolen  suits  which  did  all-round  duty  for 
best  wear. 

As  they  moved  off  across  the  prairie  toward 
the  dim  blue  belt  of  timber  which  marked  the 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  5 

banks  of  Rock  River,  other  processions  joined 
them  with  banner,  and  bands,  and  choirs,  all 
making  a  peaceful  and  significant  parade,  an 
army  of  reapers  of  grain,  not  reapers  of  men. 
Some  came  singing  "John  Brown,"  or  "Hail, 
Columbia."  Everywhere  was  a  voiced  excite 
ment  which  told  how  tremendous  the  occasion 
seemed.  In  every  wagon  hid  in  cool  deeps  of 
fresh-cut  grass,  were  unimaginable  quantities  of 
good  things  which  the  boys  never  for  a  moment 
forgot  even  in  their  great  excitement. 

On  the  procession  moved,  with  gay  flags  and 
flashing  banners.  The  dust  rolled  up,  the  cattle 
stared  across  the  fences,  the  colts  ran  snorting 
away,  tails  waving  like  flags,  and  unlucky  toilers 
in  the  fields  stopped  to  wave  their  hats  and  gaze 
wistfully  till  the  caravan  passed.  The  men 
shouted  jovial  words  to  them,  and  the  boys 
waved  their  hats  in  ready  sympathy. 

At  ten  o'clock  they  entered  the  magnificent 
grove  of  oaks,  where  a  speaker's  stand  had  been 
erected,  and  where  enterprising  salesmen  from 
Rock  River  had  erected  soda  water  and  candy 
stands,  with  an  eye  to  business. 

There  was  already  a  stupendous  crowd,  at  least 
so  it  seemed  to  the  farmers'  boys.  Two  or  three 
bands  were  whanging  away  somewhere  in  the 


C  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

grove;  children  were  shouting  and  laughing,  and 
boys  were  racing  to  and  fro,  playing  ball  or  wrest 
ling;  babies  were  screaming,  and  the  marshals 
were  shouting  directions  to  the  entering  teams, 
in  voices  that  rang  through  the  vaulted  foliage 
with  thrilling  effect,  and  the  harsh  bray  of 
the  ice  cream  and  candy  sellers  completed  the 
confusion. 

Bradley's  skill  as  a  horseman  came  out  as  he 
swung  into  the  narrow  winding  road  which  led 
through  threatening  stumps  into  the  heart  of  the 
wood  past  the  speaker's  stand.  Councill  furled 
his  great  flag  and  trailed  it  over  the  heads  of 
those  behind,  and  Flora  and  Ceres,  and  all  the 
other  deities  of  the  grange  upheld  the  staff  with 
smiling  good-will.  And  so  they  drew  up  to  the 
grand  stand,  the  most  imposing  turn-out  of  the 
day.  They  sprang  out  and  mingled  with  the 
merry  crowd,  while  Bradley  drove  away.  After 
he  had  taken  care  of  the  team  he  came  back 
towards  the  grand  stand  and  wandered  about 
alone.  He  was  not  a  native  of  the  country  and 
knew  very  few  of  the  people.  He  stood  about 
with  a  timid  expression  on  his  face  that  made 
him  seem  more  awkward  than  he  really  was.  He 
was  tall,  and  strong,  and  graceful  when  not 
conscious  of  himself  as  he  was  now.  He  felt  a 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  7 

little  bitter  at  being  ignored —  that  is,  he  felt  it 
in  a  vague  and  wordless  way. 

Lovers  passed  him  in  pairs,  eating  peanuts  or 
hot  candy  which  they  bit  off  from  a  huge  triangu 
lar  mass  still  hot  from  the  kettle.  He  had  never 
seen  any  candy  just  like  that,  and  wondered  if  he 
had  better  try  a  piece.  The  speaking  on  the 
stand  attracted  and  held  his  attention,  however. 
Oratory  always  had  a  powerful  attraction  for  him. 
He  moved  forward  and  stood  leaning  against  a 
tree. 

Seats  had  been  arranged  in  a  semi-circle 
around  the  stand,  on  which  the  speakers  of  the 
day,  the  band,  and  the  singers  were  already 
grouped.  All  around,  leaning  against  the  trees, 
twined  in  the  branches  of  the  oaks,  or  ranked 
against  the  railing,  were  the  banners  and  mottoes 
of  the  various  granges.  No.  10,  Liberty  Grange, 
"Justice  is  our  Plea."  Meadow  Grange,  "United 
We  Stand,  Divided  We  Fall."  Bethel  Grange, 
"Fraternity."  Other  mottoes  were  "Through 
Difficulties  to  the  Stars";  "Equal  Rights  to  All, 
Special  Privileges  to  None."  A  small  organ  sat 
upon  the  stand  surrounded  with  the  singers. 
Milton,  resplendent  in  his  sash  and  his  white  vest 
and  black  coat,  sat  beside  the  organist  Eileen,  the 
daughter  of  Osmond  Deering. 


8  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

The  choir  arose  to  sing,  accompanied  by  the 
organ,  and  their  voices  rolled  out  under  the 
vaulted  aisles  of  foliage,  with  that  thrilling,  far 
away  effect  of  the  singing  voice  in  the  midst  of 
illimitable  spaces.  This  was  followed  by  prayer, 
and  then  Mr.  Deering,  the  president,  called  upon 
everybody  to  join  in  singing  the  national  anthem, 
after  which  he  made  the  opening  address. 

He  spoke  of  the  marvellous  growth  of  the 
order,  how  it  had  sprung  up  from  the  soil  at  the 
need  of  the  farmer;  it  was  the  first  great  move 
ment  of  the  farmer  in  history,  and  it  was  some 
thing  to  be  proud  of.  The  farmer  had  been 
oppressed.  He  had  been  helpless  and  would  con 
tinue  helpless  till  he  asked  and  demanded  his 
rights.  After  a  dignified  and  earnest  speech  he 
said  :  — "  I  will  now  introduce  as  the  next  speaker 
Mr.  Isaac  Hobkirk." 

Mr.  Hobkirk,  a  large  man  with  a  very  bad 
voice,  made  a  fiery  speech.  "Down  with  the 
middlemen,"  he  cried,  and  was  applauded  vigor 
ously.  "  They  are  the  blood-suckers  that's  takin' 
the  life  out  of  us  farmers.  What  we  want  is  to 
deal  right  with  the  manufacturers,  an'  cut  off 
these  white-handed  fellers  in  Rock  River  who  git 
all  we  raise.  Speech ifyin'  and  picnickin'  is  all 
well  an'  good,  but  what  we  want  is  agents.  We 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  9 

want  agents  f'r  machinery,  wheat  buyers,  agents 
f'r  groceries,  that's  what  we  want ;  that's  what 
we're  here  for ;  that's  what  the  grange  was  got 
together  for.  Down  with  the  middlemen  ! " 

This  brought  out  vigorous  applause  and  showed 
that  a  very  large  number  agreed  with  him.  Brad 
ley  sat  silently  through  it  all.  It  didn't  mean 
very  much  to  him,  and  he  wished  they'd  sing 
again. 

The  chairman  again  came  forward.  "Napoleon 
said  'Old  men  for  counsel,  but  young  men  for 
war.'  But  our  young  men  have  listened  patiently 
to  us  old  fellows  for  years,  and  mebbe  they  don't 
think  much  of  our  counsel.  I'm  going  to  call  on 
Milton  Jennings,  one  of  our  rising  young  men." 

Milton,  a  handsome  young  fellow  with  yellow 
hair  and  smiling  lips,  arose  and  came  forward  to 
the  rail,  feeling  furtively  in  his  coat-tail  pocket  to 
see  that  his  handkerchief  was  all  right.  He  was 
a  student  at  the  seminary,  and  was  considered  a 
fine  young  orator.  This  was  his  first  attempt 
before  so  large  an  audience. 

"  Ladies  and  gentlemen,"  he  began  after  clear 
ing  his  throat.  "Brothers  and  sisters  of  the 
Order :  I  feel  highly  honored  by  the  president  by 
being  thus  called  upon  to  address  you.  Old  men 
for  counsel  is  all  right,  if  they  counsel  what  we 


10  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

young  men  want,  but  I'm  for  war ;  I'm  for  a  fight 
in  the  interests  of  the  farmer.  Not  merely  a 
defensive  warfare  but  an  offensive  warfare. 

"How?  By  the  ballot.  Mr.  President,  I  know 
you  don't  agree  with  me.  I  know  it's  a  rule  of 
the  Order  to  keep  politics  out  of  it,  but  I  don't 
know  of  a  better  place  to  discuss  the  interests  of 
the  farmer.  It's  a  mistake.  We've  got  to  unite 
at  the  ballot  box ;  what's  the  use  of  our  order  if 
we  don't?  We  must  be  represented  at  the  State 
legislature,  and  we  can't  do  that  unless  we  make 
the  grange  a  political  factor. 

"You  may  talk  about  legislative  corruption, 
Mr.  President,  and  about  county  rings,  to  come 
pear  home.  (Cheers  and  cries,  "  Now  you're  get 
ting  at  it,"  "That's  right,"  etc.)  But  the  only 
way  to  get  'em  out  is  to  vote  'em  out.  ("That's 
a  fact.")  You  m'say  we  can  talk  it  over  outside 
the  order.  Yes,  but  I  tell  you,  Mr.  President, 
the  order's  the  place  for  it.  If  it's  an  educa 
tional  thing,  then  I  say  it  ought  to  educate  and 
educate  in  politics,  Mr.  President. 

"I  tell  you,  I'm  for  war!  Let's  go  in  to  win! 
When  the  fall's  work  is  done,  in  fact,  from  this 
time  on,  Mr.  President,  the  farmers  of  this  coun 
ty  ought  to  organize  for  the  campaign.  Cut  and 
dry  our  tickets,  cut  and  dry  our  plans.  If  we 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  11 

begin  early  and  work  together  we  can  strangle 
the  anaconcly  that  is  crushing  us,  and  the  eagle  of 
victory  will  perch  on  our  banners  on  the  third  of 
November,  and  the  blood-suckers  trouble  us  no 
more  forever." 

With  this  remarkable  peroration,  spoken  in  a 
high  monotonous  key,  after  the  fashion  of  the 
political  orator,  Milton  sat  down  mopping  his 
face,  while  his  admirers  cheered. 

The  chairman,  who  had  been  nervously  twist 
ing  in  his  chair,  hastened  to  explain. 

"Fellow-Citizens:  I'm  not  to  be  held  respons 
ible  for  anything  anybody  else  speaks  on  this 
platform.  I  do  not  believe  with  our  young 
brother.  I  think  that  politics  will  destroy  the 
grange.  To  make  it  a  debating  school  on  polit 
ical  questions  would  bring  discord  and  wrangling 
into  it.  I  hope  I  shall  never  see  the  day.  I  now 
ask  Brother  Jennings  to  say  a  few  words." 

Mr.  Jennings,  a  fat  and  jolly  farmer,  came  to 
the  front  looking  very  hot.  His  collar  had  long 
since  melted. 

"  I  aint  very  much  of  a  speech-maker,  Mr.  Pres 
ident,  brothers  and  sisters.  Fact  is,  I  sent  my 
boy  down  to  the  seminary  to  learn  how  to  talk, 
so't  I  wouldn't  haf  to.  I  guess  he  represents  my 
idees  purty  well,  though,  all  except  this  political 


12  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

idee.  I  don't  know  about  that.  I  aint  quite 
made  up  my  mind  on  that  point.  I  guess  I'd  bet 
ter  leave  the  floor  for  somebody  else." 

"  Glad  you  left  the  floor,"  whispered  Milton  to 
his  father  as  he  sat  down  by  his  side.  Milton 
was  a  merciless  joker,  especially  upon  his  father. 

"-We  have  with  us  to-day,"  said  the  chairman, 
in  the  tone  of  one  who  announces  the  coming  in 
of  the  dessert,  "one  of  the  most  eloquent  speak 
ers  in  the  State,  one  whose  name  all  grangers 
know,  our  State  lecturer,  Miss  Ida  Wilbur." 

The  assembly  rose  to  its  feet  with  applause  as 
a  slender  young  woman  stepped  forth,  and  waited, 
with  easy  dignity  to  begin  her  speech.  There 
was  something  significant  in  her  manner,  which 
was  grave  and  dignified,  and  a  splendid  stillness 
fell  upon  the  audience  as  she  began  in  a  clear, 
penetrating  contralto : 

"Brothers  and  sisters  in  the  Order:  While  I 
have  been  sitting  here  listening  to  your  speakers, 
I  have  been  looking  at  the  mottoes  on  your  ban 
ners,  and  I  have  been  trying  to  find  out  by  those 
expressions  what  your  conception  of  this  move 
ment  is.  I  wonder  whether  its  majesty  appears 
to  you  as  it  does  to  me."  She  paused  for  an 
instant.  "We  are  in  danger  of  losing  sight  of  its 
larger  meaning. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  13 

"Primarily,  the  object  of  the  grange  has  been 
the  education  of  the  farmers.  It  has  been  a 
great  social  educator,  and  I  am  glad,  my  friends 
and  neighbors,  when  I  can  look  out  upon  such  an 
assembly  as  this.  I  see  in  it  the  rise  of  the  idea 
of  union,  and  intelligent  union ;  but  principally  I 
see  in  it  the  meeting  together  of  the  farmers 
who  live  too  much  apart  from  the  rest  of  the 
world. 

"I  believe,"  she  cried  with  lifted  hand,  "I 
believe  this  is  the  greatest  movement  of  the 
farmer  in  the  history  of  the  world.  It  is  a  move 
ment  against  unjust  discrimination,  no  doubt,  but 
it  has  another  side  to  me,  a  poetic  side,  I  call  it. 
The  farmer  is  a  free  citizen  of  a  great  republic,  it 
is  true ;  but  he  is  a  Solitary  free  citizen.  He 
lives  alone  too  much.  He  meets  his  fellow-men 
too  little.  His  dull  life,  his  hard  work,  make  it 
almost  impossible  to  keep  his  better  nature  upper 
most.  The  work  of  the  grange  is  a  social  work." 
She  was  supported  by  generous  applause. 

"It  is  not  to  antagonize  town  and  country. 
The  work  of  the  grange  to  me  is  not  political. 
Keep  politics  out  of  it,  or  it  will  destroy  you. 
Use  it  to  bring  yourselves  together.  Let  it  fur 
nish  you  with  pleasant  hours.  Establish  your 
agencies,  if  you  can,  but  I  care  more  for  meetings 


14  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

like  this.  I  care  more  for  the  poetry  there  is  in 
having  Flora,  and  Ceres,  and  Pomona  brought 
into  the  farmer's  home." 

Her  great  brown  eyes  glowed  as  she  spoke  and 
her  lifted  head  thrilled  those  who  sat  near  enough 
to  see  the  emotion  that  was  in  the  lines  of  her 
face.  The  sun  struck  through  the  trees,  that 
swayed  in  masses  overhead,  dappling  the  up 
turned  faces  with  light  and  shade.  The  leaves 
under  the  tread  of  the  wind  rustled  softly,  and 
the  soaring  hawk  looked  down  curiously  as  he 
drifted  above  the  grove,  like  a  fleck  of  cloud. 

On  Bradley,  standing  there  alone,  there  fell 
something  mysterious,  like  a  light.  Something 
whiter  and  more  penetrating  than  the  sunlight. 
As  he  listened,  something  stirred  within  him,  a 
vast  longing,  a  hopeless  ambition,  nameless  as  it 
was  strange.  His  bronzed  face  paled  and  he 
breathed  heavily.  His  eyes  absorbed  every  detail 
of  the  girl's  face  and  figure.  There  was  wonder 
in  his  eyes  at  her  girlish  face,  and  something  like 
awe  at  her  powerful  diction  and  her  impersonal 
emotion.  She  stood  there  like  an  incarnation  of 
the  great  dream-world  that  lay  beyond  his  horizon, 
the  world  of  poets  and  singers  in  the  far  realms 
of  light  and  luxury. 

"I  have  a  dream  of  what  is  coming,"  she  said 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  15 

in  conclusion,  and  her  voice  had  a  prophetic  ring. 
"  I  see  a  time  when  the  farmer  will  not  need  to 
live  in  a  cabin  on  a  lonely  farm.  I  see  the 
farmers  coming  together  in  groups.  I  see  them 
with  time  to  read,  and  time  to  visit  with  their  fel 
lows.  I  see  them  enjoying  lectures  in  beautiful 
halls,  erected  in  every  village.  I  see  them  gather 
like  the  Saxons  of  old  upon  the  green  at  evening 
to  sing  and  dance.  I  see  cities  rising  near  them 
with  schools,  and  churches,  and  concert  halls,  and 
theatres.  I  see  a  day  when  the  farmer  will  no 
longer  be  a  drudge  and  his  wife  a  bond  slave,  but 
happy  men  and  women  who  will  go  singing  to 
their  pleasant  tasks  upon  their  fruitful  farms." 
The  audience  did  not  cheer,  it  sat  as  if  in  church. 
The  girl  seemed  to  be  speaking  prophecy. 

"When  the  boys  and  girls  will  not  go  West  nor 
to  the  city ;  when  life  will  be  worth  living.  In 
that  day  the  moon  will  be  brighter  and  the  stars 
more  glad,  and  pleasure,  and  poetry,  and  love  of 
life  come  back  to  the  man  who  tills  the  soil." 

The  people  broke  into  wild  applause  when  she 
finished.  All  were  deeply  stirred.  Tears  were 
streaming  down  many  faces,  and  when  Deering 
arose  to  announce  a  song  by  the  choir  his  voice 
shook  and  he  made  no  secret  of  his  deep  emotion. 
After  the  song,  he  said:  "Neighbors,  we  don't 


16  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

want  to  spoil  that  splendid  speech  with  another 
this  day.  The  best  thing  we  can  do  is  to  try  to 
think  that  good  time  is  here  and  eat  our  dinner 
with  the  resolution  to  bring  that  good  time  as 
soon  as  possible." 

Bradley  stood  there  after  the  others  had  risen. 
The  dazzling  pictures  called  up  by  the  speaker's 
words  were  still  moving  confusedly  in  his  brain. 
They  faded  at  last  and  he  moved  with  a  sigh  and 
went  out  to  feed  the  horses  their  oats. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  17 

II. 

THE  DINNER  UNDER  THE  OAKS. 

THE  dinner  made  a  beautiful  scene,  the  most 
idyllic  in  the  farmer's  life.  The  sun,  now  high 
noon,  fell  through  the  leaves  in  patches  of  quiver 
ing  light  upon  the  white  table-cloth,  spread  out 
upon  the  planks,  and  it  fell  upon  the  fair  hair  of 
girls,  and  upon  the  hard  knotted  fingers  of  men 
and  women  grown  old  in  toil.  The  rattle  of 
dishes,  the  harsh-keyed,  unwonted  laughter  of  the 
women,  and  the  sounding  invitations  to  dinner 
given  and  taken  filled  the  air.  The  long  plank 
seats  placed  together  made  capital  tables,  and 
eager  children  squatted  about  wistfully  watching 
the  display  of  each  new  delicacy.  The  crude 
abundance  of  the  Iowa  farm  had  been  brought  out 
to  make  it  a  great  dinner.  The  boys  could  hardly 
be  restrained  from  clutching  at  each  new  dish. 

The  Councills  and  the  Burns  families  took  din 
ner  together.  Mrs.  Burns,  fretful  and  worn, 
cuffed  the  children  back  from  the  table  while 
bringing  out  her  biscuit  and  roast  chicken. 
Some  sat  stolidly  silent,  but  big-voiced  Councill 


18  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

joked  in  his  heavy  way  with  everyone  within 
earshot. 

"Well,  the  Lord  is  on  our  side,  neighbor  Jen 
nings,  to-day,  anyhow,"  he  roared  across  the  space 
of  two  or  three  tables. 

"He's  always  on  our  side,  brother  Councill," 
smiled  Jennings. 

"Wai,  I'd  know  about  that.  Sometimes  I'm 
a  leettle  in  doubt." 

"  Got  something  good  to  eat  ? "  inquired  Jen 
nings  of  Mrs.  Councill. 

"  Land  sakes,  no !  We  never  have  anything 
fit  to  eat  since  Jane's  gone  to  havin'  beaux ;  my 
cookin'  aint  fit  for  a  hawg  to  eat." 

"I  aint  a-goin'  to  eat  it,  then,"  roared  Councill 
in  vast  delight  at  his  joke  on  himself.  "I'll  go 
over  and  eat  with  Marm  Jennings."  They  all 
laughed  at  this. 

"Tell  us  so't  we  c'n  laff,"  called  Mrs.  Smith, 
coming  over  to  see  what  they  did  have. 

"Where's  Brad?"  said  Mrs.  Councill,  looking 
about  her.  "Aint  he  comin'  to  dinner?" 

"  I  don't  see  him  around  anywheres.  Mebbe 
he's  out  feed'n  the  horses,"  replied  Councill,  with 
out  concern. 

"Say  !  that  was  a  great  speech  that  girl  made," 
put  in  Brother  Smith,  coming  over  with  a  chicken 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  19 

les:  in  one  hand  and  a    buttered    biscuit    in    the 

o 

other.     "  But  what  we  want  is  free  trade" — 

"What  we  want  is  a  home  market,"  said  Mil 
ton,  some  distance  away. 

"Oh,  go  to  —  Texas  with  y'r  home  market!" 
"Tut,    tut,    tut,    no    politics,   brethren,"   inter 
rupted  Jennings. 

Bradley,  ignored  by  everybody,  was  standing 
over  by  the  trunk  of  a  large  oak  tree,  watching 
from  afar  the  young  girl  who  had  so  stirred  him. 
She  was  eating  dinner  with  Deering,  his  wife,  and 
daughter,  and  Milton,  who  was  there,  looking 
very  bright  and  handsome,  or  at  least  he  appeared 
so  to  Eileen  Deering,  a  graceful  little  girl,  his 
classmate  at  the  seminary. 

Miss  Wilbur  sat  beside  Deering,  who  was  a 
large  man  with  a  type  of  face  somewhat  resem 
bling  Lincoln's.  She  was  smiling  brightly,  but 
her  smile  had  something  thoughtful  in  it,  and  her 
eyes  had  unknown  deeps  like  a  leaf-bottomed 
woodland  pool  across  which  the  sun  fell.  She 
was  feeling  yet  the  stress  of  emotion  she  had  felt 
in  speaking,  and  was  a  little  conscious  of  the 
admiring  glances  of  the  people. 

She  saw  once  or  twice  a  tall,  roughly  dressed 
young  farmer,  who  seemed  to  be  looking  at  her 
steadily,  and  there  was  something  in  his  glance, 


20  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

a  timid  worshipful  expression,  that  touched  her 
and  made  her  observe  him  more  closely.  He  was 
very  farmer-like,  she  noticed ;  his  cheap  coat 
fitted  him  badly,  and  his  hat  was  old  and  shape 
less.  Yet  there  was  something  natively  fine  and 
chivalrous  in  his  admiration.  She  felt  that. 

"You're  a  farmer's  daughter  yourself,"  said 
Deering,  as  if  they  had  been  speaking  of  some 
body  else  who  was. 

"Yes,  my  father  was  a  farmer.  I'm  a  teacher. 
I  only  began  a  little  while  ago  to  speak  in  the 
interest  of  the  farmer.  It  seems  to  me  that 
everybody  is  looking  out  for  himself  except  the 
farmer,  and  I  want  to  help  him  to  help  himself. 
I  expect  to  speak  in  every  county  in  the  State 
this  winter." 

Bradley  crept  nearer.  He  was  eager  to  hear 
what  she  was  saying.  He  grew  furtive  in  his 
manner,  when  she  observed  him,  and  he  felt  as  if 
he  were  doing  something  criminal.  He  saw  Miss 
Wilbur  say  something  to  Mr.  Deering,  who  looked 
up  a  moment  later  and  said  to  Bradley,  whom  he 
did  not  know,  "Why,  certainly,  come  and  have 
some  dinner,  plenty  of  it." 

Bradley  flushed  hot  with  shame  and  indigna 
tion,  and  moved  away  deeply  humiliated.  They 
had  taken  him  for  a  poor,  friendless,  lonely  tramp, 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE,  21 

and  there  was  just  enough  truth  in  his  loneliness 
to  make  it  sting. 

"  Say,  Brad,  don't  you  want  some  grub  ? "  called 
Councill,  catching  sight  of  him. 

"Quick,  Vy  lose  it,"  said  Burns. 

He  sat  down  and  fell  upon  the  dinner  silently, 
but  there  was  a  hot  flush  still  upon  his  face.  He 
was  not  a  beau.  It  had  always  been  difficult  for 
him  to  address  a  marriageable  woman,  and  a  joke 
on  that  subject  threw  him  into  dumb  confusion. 
He  had  lived  a  dozen  tender  dreams  of  which  no 
one  knew  a  word.  Indeed,  he  never  acknowl 
edged  them  to  himself.  He  had  admired  in  this 
way  Eileen  Deering  whom  he  had  seen  with  Mil 
ton  a  few  times  during  the  year.  He  now  envied 
Milton  his  easy  air  of  calm  self-possession  in  the 
presence  of  two  such  beautiful  girls.  There  was 
a  bitter  feeling  of  rebellion  in  his  heart. 

Miss  Wilbur  had  stirred  his  unexplored  self. 
Down  where  ambitions  are  born  ;  where  aspira 
tions  rise  like  sun-shot  mists,  her  words  and  the 
light  of  her  face  had  gone.  Already  there  was 
something  sacred  and  ineffably  sweet  about  her 
voice  and  face.  She  had  come  to  him  as  the 
right  woman  comes  sometimes  to  a  man,  and 
thereafter  his  whole  life  is  changed. 

He  walked  away  from  the  few  people  he  knew, 


22  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

and  tried  to  interest  himself  in  the  games  they 
were  playing  but  he  could  not.  He  drifted  back 
to  the  grand  stand  and  sought  about  till  he  could 
see  Miss  Wilbur  once  more.  She  was  so  pure, 
so  beautiful  to  him. 

The  hour  or  two  after  dinner  was  spent  in 
visiting  and  getting  acquainted,  and  the  time 
seemed  all  too  short.  Each  granger  took  this 
opportunity  of  inquiring  after  the  health  of  the 
other  grangers  of  the  county.  The  young  people 
wandered  in  laughing,  romping  groups  about  the 
grounds,  buying  peanuts  and  sugar  candy,  and 
drinking  the  soda  water  and  lemonade  which  the 
venders  called  with  strenuous  enterprise. 

On  the  shadowed  side  of  the  stand  the  leading 
men  of  the  grange  gathered,  consulting  about 
plans  and  measures. 

"Now,  it  seems  to  me  that  we're  going  on  all 
right  now,"  said  Deering.  "We're  getting  our 
goods  cheap  and  we're  cuttin'  off  the  middleman." 

"And  we're  getting  hold  of  the  railways." 

"  Yes,  but  it  don't  amount  to  nothin'  compared 
to  what  ought  to  be  done.  We  ought  'o  oust 
them  infernal  blood-suckers  that's  in  our  court 
house,  and  we  want  to  do  it  as  a  grange." 

"No,"  said  Jennings  in  his  placid  way,  "we 
can  do  that  better.  I've  got  a  plan." 


A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  23 

"What  we  want,"  said  Hobkirk,  "is  a  party, 
a  ticket  of  our  own,  then  we  can  " — 

"No,  we  can't  do  that.  It  won't  be  right  to 
do  that.  We  must  stand  by  the  party  that  has 
given  us  our  railway  legislation." 

Milton  and  several  of  the  younger  farmers 
drew  off  one  side  and  talked  earnestly  about  the 
fall  campaign. 

"They'll  beat  us  again  unless  we  go  in 
together,"  Milton  said  with  emphatic  gesticula 
tion.  Milton  was  a  natural  politician.  His  words 
found  quick  response  in  the  erratic  Hobkirk,  who 
had  good  ideas  but  whose  temperament  made  all 
his  words  jagged  shot.  He  irritated  where  he 
meant  to  convince. 

Bradley  listened  to  it  all  without  feeling  that 
he  had  any  part  in  it.  It  didn't  seem  to  him  that 
politics  had  anything  to  do  with  the  beautiful 
words  of  the  girl.  On  the  stand  the  choir  began 
to  sing  again  and  he  walked  toward  them.  They 
sang  on  and  the  people  listened  while  they  packed 
away  the  dishes.  They  sang  "  Auld  Lang  Syne," 
and  "We'll  Meet  Beyond  the  River,"  with  that 
characteristic  attraction  of  the  common  people 
for  wistful,  sorrowful  cadences  which  is  a  paradox 
not  easily  explained. 

"All  aboard!"  called  Councill  from  his  wagon 
3 


24  A    SPOIL  OF  OFFICE. 

as  Bradley  drove  the  team  up  to  the  band  stand. 
While  the  merry  young  people  clambered  in  and 
paired  off  along  the  seats  he  was  seeing  Miss 
Wilbur  shaking  hands  with  the  people  who  paused 
to  say  good-by.  His  heart  ached  for  a  glance  of 
her  brown  eyes  and  a  word,  but  he  held  the  reins 
in  his  great  hands  and  his  face  showed  only  his 
usual  impassive  reticence.  He  was  only  Coun- 
cill's  hired  man. 

The  banners  were  taken  up,  the  children 
loaded  in,  the  boys  looking  back  wistfully  to  the 
games  and  the  candy-stands.  Council!  unfurled 
his  flag  to  the  wind,  and  Bradley  swung  the  eager 
horses  into  the  lane.  On  all  sides  the  farmers' 
teams  were  getting  out  into  the  road  ;  the  work 
of  the  marshals  was  done.  Each  man  went  his 
own  gait. 

The  young  people  behind  Bradley  began  to 
sing:  — 

"  Out  on  an  ocean  all  boundless  we  ride, 
We're  homeward  bound, 
Homeward  bound." 

And  so  along  each  lane  through  the  red  sunset 
the  farmers  rolled  home.  Home  through  lanes 
bordered  with  velvet  green  wheat,  across  which 
the  sunlight  streamed  in  dazzling  yellow  floods. 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  25 

Home  through  wild  prairies,  where  the  birds 
nested  and  the  gophers  whistled.  The  dust  rose 
up,  transformed  into  gold  by  the  light  of  the  set 
ting  sun.  The  children  fell  asleep  in  their  tired 
mothers'  arms.  The  men  shouted  to  each  other 
from  team  to  team,  discussing  the  speakers  and 
the  crops. 

Smiles  were  few  as  each  wagon  turned  into  its 
gateway  and  rolled  up  to  the  silent  house.  The 
sombre  shadow  of  the  farm's  drudgery  had  fallen 
again  on  faces  unused  to  smiling. 

Only  the  lovers  lingering  on  the  road  till  the 
moon  rose  and  the  witchery  of  night  came  to 
make  the  girlish  eyes  more  brilliant,  softening 
their  gayety  into  a  wistful  tenderness,  only  to 
these  did  the  close  of  the  day  seem  as  sweet  and 
momentous  as  the  morning.  While  the  trusty 
horse  jogged  on,  impatient  of  the  slow  pace  set 
by  his  driver,  the  lovers  sat  with  little  to  say,  but 
with  hearts  lit  by  the  light  that  can  glorify  for  a 
few  moons,  at  least,  even  the  life  of  ceaseless  toil. 


26  ^   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 


III. 

BRADLEY  RESOLVES  TO  GO  TO  SCHOOL. 

A  FARM  is  a  good  place  to  think  in,  if  a  man 
has  sufficient  self-sustaining  force  —  that  is,  if 
work  does  not  dominate  him  and  force  him  to 
think  in  petty  or  degrading  circles. 

It  is  a  lonely  life.  Especially  lonely  on  a  large 
farm  in  the  West.  The  life  of  a  hired  man  like, 
Bradley  Talcott  is  spent  mainly  with  the  horses 
and  cattle.  In  the  spring  he  works  day  after  day 
with  a  drag  or  seeder,  moving  to  and  fro  an  ani 
mate  speck  across  a  dull  brown  expanse  of  soil. 
Even  when  he  has  a  companion  there  is  little 
talk,  for  there  is  little  to  say,  and  the  extra  exer 
tion  of  speaking  against  the  wind,  or  across  dis 
tances,  soon  forces  them  both  into  silence. 

True,  there  is  the  glory  of  the  vast  sweep  of 
sky,  the  wild  note  of  the  crane,  the  flight  of 
geese,  the  multitudinous  twitter  of  sparrows,  and 
the  subtle  exalting  smell  of  the  fresh,  brown 
earth ;  but  these  things  do  not  compensate  for 
human  society.  Nature  palls  upon  the  normal 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  27 

man  when  he  is  alone  with  her  constantly.  The 
monotone  of  the  wind  and  the  monochrome  of  the 
sky  oppress  him.  His  heart  remains  empty. 

The  rustle  of  flashing,  blade-like  corn  leaves, 
the  vast  clean-cut  mountainous  clouds  of  June, 
the  shade  of  shimmering  popple  trees,  the  whistle 
of  plover  and  the  sailing  hawk  do  not  satisfy  the 
man  who  follows  the  corn-plow  with  the  hot  sun 
beating  down  all  day  upon  his  bent  head  and 
dusty  shoulders.  His  point  of  view  is  not  that 
from  the  hammock.  He  is  not  out  on  a  summer 
vacation.  If  he  thinks,  he  thinks  bitter  things, 
and  when  he  speaks  his  words  are  apt  to  be  oaths. 

Still  a  man  has  time  to  think  and  occasionally 
a  man  dominates  his  work  and  refuses  to  be 
hardened  and  distorted.  Many  farmers  swear  at 
the  team  or  the  plow  and  everything  that  bothers 
them.  Some  whistle  vacantly  and  mechanically 
all  day,  or  sing  in  endless  succession  the  few 
gloomy  songs  they  know.  Bradley  thought. 

He  thought  all  summer  long.  He  was  a 
powerful  man  physically  and  turned  off  his  work 
with  a  ready  knack  which  left  him  free  to  think. 
All  day  as  he  moved  to  and  fro  in  the  rustling 
corn  rows,  he  thought,  and  with  his  thinking,  his 
powers  expanded.  He  had  the  mysterious  power 
of  self-development. 


28  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

The  centre  of  his  thinking  was  that  slender 
young  woman  and  the  words  she  had  uttered. 
He  repeated  her  prophetic  words  as  nearly  as  he 
could  a  hundred  times.  He  repeated  them  aloud 
as  he  plowed  day  after  day,  through  the  dreamful 
September  mist.  He  began  to  look  ahead  and 
wonder  what  he  should  do  or  could  do.  Must  he 
be  a  farmer's  hired  man  or  a  renter  all  his  life  ? 
His  mind  moved  slowly  from  point  to  point,  but 
it  never  returned  to  its  old  dumb  patience.  His 
mind,  like  his  body,  had  unknown  latent  forces. 
He  was  one  of  those  natures  whose  delicacy  and 
strength  are  alike  hidden. 

"Brad  don't  know  his  strength,"  Councill  was 
accustomed  to  say.  "  If  he  should  ever  get  mad 
enough  to  fight,  the  other  feller'd  better  go 
a-visitin'."  And  a  person  who  knew  his  mind 
might  have  said,  "  If  Bradley  makes  up  his  mind 
to  do  a  thing  he'll  do  it."  But  no  one  knew  his 
mind.  He  did  not  know  its  resources  himself. 

His  mind  seized  upon  every  hint,  and  bit  by 
bit  his  resolution  was  formed.  Milton,  going  by 
one  Monday  morning  on  his  way  to  the  seminary, 
stopped  beside  the  fence  where  Brad  was  plowing 
and  waited  for  him  to  come  up.  He  had  a  real 
interest  in  Bradley. 

"Hello,  Brad,"  he  called  cheerily. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  29 

"Hello,  Milt." 

"  How's  business  ? " 

"  Oh,  so  so.     Pretty  cold." 

The  wind  was  blowing  cold  and  cuttingly  from 
the  north-west.  Milton,  rosy  with  his  walk, 
dropped  down  beside  the  hedge  of  weeds  in  the 
sun  and  Brad  climbed  over  the  fence  and  joined 
him.  It  was  warm  and  cosy  there,  and  the  crick 
ets  were  cheeping  feebly  in  the  russet  grass 
where  the  sunlight  fell.  The  wind  whistled 
through  the  weeds  with  a  wild,  mournful  sound. 
Bradley  did  not  speak  for  some  time.  He 
listened  to  Milton.  At  last  he  said  abruptly  — 

"Say,  Milt,  what  does  it  cost  to  go  to  school 
down  there  ? " 

"  Depends  on  who  goes.  Cost  me  'bout  forty 
dollars  a  term.  Shep  an'  I  room  it  and  cook  our 
own  grub." 

"  What's  the  tuition  ? " 

"Eight  dollars  a  term." 

"  Feller  could  go  to  the  public  school  for 
nauthin',  couldn't  he  ?  " 

"  Yes,  and  that'd  be  all  it  'ud  be  worth,"  said 
Milton  with  fine  scorn  at  an  inferior  institution. 

"  What  does  a  room  cost  ? "  Brad  pursued  after 
a  silence. 

"  Well,  ours  cost  'bout  three  dollars  a  month, 


30  ^   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

but  we  have  two  rooms:     You  could  get  one  for 
fifty  cents  a  week." 

He  looked  up  at  Brad  with  a  laugh  in  his 
eyes.  "Don't  think  of  starting  in  right  off,  do 
you  ? " 

"Well,  I  don't  know  but  I  might  if  I  had 
money  enough  to  carry  me  through." 

"What  y'  think  o'  doin',  study  law?" 

"No,  but  I'd  kind  o'  like  to  be  able  to  speak  in 
public.  Seems  t'  me  a  feller  ought  'o  know  how 
to  speak  at  a  school  meetin'  when  he's  called  on. 
I  couldn't  say  three  words  to  save  m'  soul.  They 
teach  that  down  there,  don't  they?" 

"  Yes,  we  have  Friday  exercises  and  then  there 
are  two  debating  clubs.  They're  boss  for  prac 
tice.  That's  where  I  put  in  most  o'  my  time. 
I'm  goin'  into  politics,"  he  ended  with  a  note  of 
exalted  purpose  as  if  going  into  politics  were 
really  something  fine.  "  Are  you  ? " 

"Well,  there's  no  tellin'  what  minit  a  feller's 
liable  to  be  called  on  and  I'd  kinder  like  to" 
He  fell  off  into  silence  again. 

Milton  jumped  up.  "Well,  hold  on,  this  won't 
do  f'r  me;  I  must  mosey  along.  Good-by,"  he 
said,  and  set  off  down  the  road. 

"  When  does  the  next  term  begin  ? "  called 
Bradley. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  31 

"November  I5th,"  Milton  replied,  looking 
about  for  an  instant.  •"  Better  try  it." 

Bradley  threw  the  lines  over  his  shoulder  and, 
bending  his  head,  fell  into  deep  calculation. 
Milton's  clear  tenor  was  heard  ringing  across  the 
fields,  fitfully  dying  away.  Milton  made  the  most 
of  everything,  and  besides  he  was  on  his  way  to 
see  Eileen.  He  could  afford  to  be  gay. 

Bradley  thought,  even  while  he  husked  the 
corn,  one  of  the -bitterest  of  all  farm  tasks  when 
the  cold  winds  of  November  begin  to  blow. 
Councill  had  a  large  field  of  corn  and  every  morn 
ing  in  the  cold  and  frosty  light  Ike  and  Bradley 
were  out  in  the  field,  each  with  a  team.  Beauti 
ful  mornings,  if  one  could  have  looked  upon  it 
from  a  window  in  a  comfortable  home.  There 
were  mornings  when  the  glittering  purple  and 
orange  domes  of  the  oaks  and  maples  swam  in  the 
mist  dreamfully,  so  beautiful  the  eyes  lingered 
upon  them  wistfully.  Mornings  when  the  dim 
lines  of  the  woods  were  a  royal  purple,  and  gray- 
blue  shadows  streamed  from  the  trees  upon  the 
yellow-green  grass. 

Husking  was  the  last  of  the  fall  work  and  the 
last  day  of  husking  found  Bradley  desolately 
undecided.  They  had  been  working  desperately 
all  the  week  to  finish  the  field  on  Saturday.  It 


32  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

was  a  bitter  cold  morning.  As  they  leaped  into 
the  frost-rimmed  wagon-box  and  caught  up  the 
reins,  the  half-frozen  team  sprang  away  with  des 
perate  energy,  making  the  wagon  bound  over  the 
frozen  ground  with  a  thunderous  clatter. 

In  every  field  the  sound  of  similar  wagons  get 
ting  out  to  work  could  be  heard.  It  was  not  yet 
light.  A  leaden-gray  dome  of  cloud  had  closed  in 
over  the  morning  sky  and  the  feeling  of  snow  was 
in  the  air.  There  was  only  a  dull  flush  of  red  in 
the  east  to  show  the  night  had  been  frostily  clear. 

Ike  raised  a  great  shout  to  let  his  neighbors 
know  he  was  in  the  field.  Councill,  with  a  fork 
over  his  shoulder,  was  on  his  way  down  the  lane 
to  help  a  neighbor  thresh.  Ike  jovially  shook  the 
reins  above  his  colts  and  Bradley  followed  close 
behind,  and  the  two  wagons  went  crashing 
through  the  forest  of  corn.  The  race  started  the 
blood  of  the  drivers  as  well  as  that  of  the  teams. 
The  cold  wind  cut  the  face  like  a  knife  and  the 
crackling  corn-stalks  flew  through  the  air  as  the 
wagons  swept  over  them.  Reaching  the  farther 
side  they  turned  in  and  faced  toward  the  house, 
the  horses  blowing  white  clouds  of  breath. 

"Jee  Whitaker !  "  shouted  Ike,  as  he  crouched 
on  the  leeward  side  of  his  wagon,  and  threshed 
his  arms  around  his  chest,  after  having  finished 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  33 

blanketing  his  team  to  protect  them  against  the 
ferocious  wind.  "  I'm  thunderin'  glad  this  is  the 
last  day  of  this  kind  o'  thing." 

He  looked  like  a  grizzly  bear  in  bad  repair. 
He  had  an  old  fur  cap  on  his  head  that  concealed 
his  ears  and  most  of  his  face.  He  wore  a  ragged 
coat  that  was  generally  gray,  but  had  white  lines 
along  the  seams.  Under  this  he  wore  another 
coat  still  more  ragged,  and  the  whole  was  belted 
at  the  waist  with  an  old  surcingle.  Like  his 
father,  he  was  possessed  of  vast  physical  strength, 
and  took  pride  in  his  powers  of  endurance. 

"  Wai,  here  goes,"  he  said,  stripping  off  his  out 
side  coat.  "  It's  tough,  but  it  aint  no  use  dreadin* 
it." 

Bradley  smiled  back  at  him  in  his  wordless  way, 
and  caught  hold  of  the  first  ear.  It  sent  a  shiver 
of  pain  through  him.  His  fingers,  worn  to  the 
quick,  protruded  from  his  stiff,  ragged  gloves,  and 
the  motions  of  clasping  and  stripping  the  ear  were 
like  the  rasp  of  a  file  on  a  naked  nerve.  He 
shivered  and  swore,  but  his  oath  was  like  a  groan. 

The  horses,  humped  and  shivering,  looked  black 
and  fuzzy,  by  reason  of  their  erected  hair.  They 
tore  at  the  corn-stalks  hungrily.  Their  tails 
streamed  sidewise  with  the  force  of  the  wind, 
which  had  a  wild  and  lonesome  sound,  as  it  swept 


34  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

across  the  sear  stretches  of  the  corn.  The  stalks 
towered  far  above  the  heads  of  the  huskers,  but 
did  little  to  temper  the  onslaught  of  the  blast. 

Occasional  flocks  of  geese  drifted  by  in  the 
grasp  of  the  inexorable  gale,  their  necks  out-thrust 
as  if  they  had  already  caught  the  gleam  of  their 
warm  southern  lagoons.  Clouds  of  ducks,  more 
adventurous,  were  seen  in  irregular  flight,  rising 
and  falling  from  the  lonely  fields  with  wild  clap 
ping  of  wings.  Only  the  sparrows  seemed  indif 
ferent  to  the  cold. 

There  was  immensity  in  the  dome  of  the 
unbroken,  seamless,  gray  threatening  sky.  There 
was  majesty  in  the  dim  plain,  across  which  the 
morning  light  slowly  fell.  The  plain,  with  its 
dark  blue  groves,  from  which  thin  lines  of  smoke 
rose  and  hastened  away,  and  majesty  in  the  wind 
that  came  from  the  illimitable  and  desolate  north. 
But  the  lonely  huskers  had  no  time  to  feel,  much 
less  to  think,  upon  these  things. 

They  bent  down  to  their  work  and  snatched 
the  red  and  yellow  ears  bare  of  their  frosty  husks 
with  marvelous  dexterity.  The  first  plunge  over, 
Bradley  found  as  usual  that  the  sharpest  pain  was 
over.  The  wind  cut  his  face,  and  an  occasional 
driving  flake  of  snow  struck  and  clung  to  his  face 
and  stung.  His  coat  collar  chafed  his  chin,  and 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  35 

the  frost  wet  his  gloves  through  and  through. 
But  he  warmed  to  it  and  at  last  almost  forgot  it. 
He  fell  into  thought  again,  so  deep  that  his  work 
became  absolutely  mechanical. 

"  Say,  Brad,  let's  go  to  that  dance  over  at 
Davis's,"  shouted  Ike,  after  an  hour  of  silence. 

"  I  guess  not." 

"Why  not?" 

"Because  I  aint  invited." 

"  Oh,  that's  all  right ;  Ed,  he  told  me  to  bring 
anyone  I  felt  like." 

"  I  aint  going,  all  the  same.  I  may  be  in  Rock 
River  by  next  Wednesday." 

"They  aint  no  danger  o'  you're  going  to  Rock 
River." 

Bradley  fell  once  more  into  the  circle  of  his 
plans  and  went  the  round  again.  He  had  saved 
two  hundred  dollars.  It  was  enough  to  take  him 
to  school  a  year,  but  what  then  ?  That  was  the 
recurring  question.  It  was  the  most  momentous 
day  in  his  life.  Should  he  spend  his  money  in 
this  way?  Every  dollar  of  it  represented  toil, 
long  days  of  lonely  plowing  or  dragging,  long 
days  under  the  burning  harvest  sun.  It  was  all 
he  had,  all  he  had  to  show  for  his  life.  Was  it 
right  to  spend  it  for  schooling? 

"What  good'll  it  do  yeh?"  Ike  asked  one  day 


36  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

when  Bradley  was  feeling  out  for  a  little  helpful 
sympathy.  "Better  buy  a  team  with  it  and  rent 
a  piece  of  land.  What  y'  goan  to  do  after  you 
spent  the  money? " 

"  I  don't  know,"  Bradley  had  replied  in  his  hon 
est  way. 

"Wai,  I'd  think  of  it  a  dum  long  spell  'fore  I'd 
do  it,"  was  Ike's  reply,  and  Councill  had  agreed 
with  it. 

Bradley  fell  behind  Ike,  for  he  wanted  to  be 
alone.  He  had  grown  into  the  habit  of  account 
ing  to  Her  for  his  actions,  and  when  he  wished  to 
consult  with  Her,  he  wanted  to  be  alone.  There 
was  something  sacred,  even  in  the  thought  of 
Her,  and  he  shrank  from  having  his  thoughts 
broken  in  upon  by  any  careless  or  jesting  word. 

As  he  pondered,  his  hands  grew  slower  in  their 
action  and,  at  last,  he  stopped  and  leaned  against 
the  wagon-box.  Something  came  into  his  heart 
that  shook  him,  a  feeling  of  unknown  power,  a 
certainty  of  faith  in  himself.  He  shivered  with 
an  electric  thrill  that  made  his  hair  stir. 

He  lifted  his  face  to  the  sky  and  his  eyes  saw 
a  crane  sailing  with  stately  grace,  in  measureless 
circle,  a  mere  speck  against  the  unbroken  gray  of 
the  sky.  There  seemed  something  prophetic ; 
something  mystic  in  its  harsh,  wild  cry  that  fell, 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  37 

like  the  scream  of  the  eagle,  a  defiant  note 
against  wind  and  storm. 

"I'll  do  it,"  he  said,  and  his  hands  clinched. 
At  the  sound  of  his  voice  he  shivered  again,  as  if 
the  wind  had  suddenly  penetrated  his  clothing. 
His  dress  made  him  grotesque.  The  spaces 
around  him  made  him  pathetic,  but  in  his  golden- 
brown  eyes  was  something  that  made  him  sublime. 

The  thought  which  he  dared  not  utter,  but 
which  lay  deep  under  every  resolution  and  action 
he  made,  was  the  hope,  undefined  and  unacknowl 
edged  to  himself,  that  sometime  he  might  meet 
her  and  have  her  approve  his  action. 


38  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 


IV. 


BRADLEY  S    TRIALS    AT    SCHOOL. 

THE  morning  on  which  Bradley  was  to  begin 
his  term  at  the  seminary  was  a  clear,  crisp  day  in 
later  November.  He  had  rented  a  room  in  the 
basement  of  a  queer  old  building,  known  as  the 
Park  Hotel,  a  crazy  mansard-roofed  structure 
which  held  at  regular  intervals  some  rash  men 
attempting  to  run  it  as  a  hotel. 

Bradley  had  rented  this  cellar  because  it  was 
the  cheapest  place  he  could  find.  He  agreed  to 
pay  two  dollars  a  month  for  it,  and  the  use  of  the 
two  chairs,  and  cooking  stove,  which  made  up  its 
furnishing.  He  had  purchased  a  skillet  and  two 
or  three  dishes,  Mrs.  Councill  had  lent  him  a  bed, 
and  he  seemed  reasonably  secure  against  hunger 
and  cold. 

He  looked  forward  to  his  entrance  into  the 
school  with  dread.  All  that  Monday  morning  he 
stood  about  his  door  watching  for  Milton  and  see- 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  39 

ing  the  merry  students  in  procession  up  the  walk. 
The  girls  seemed  so  bright  and  so  beautiful,  he 
wondered  how  the  boys  could  walk  beside  them 
with  such  calm  unconcern.  Their  laughter,  their 
mutual  greetings  threw  him  into  a  profound  self- 
pity  and  disgust.  When  he  joined  Milton  and 
Shepard,  and  went  up  the  walk  under  the  bare- 
limbed  maple  trees,  he  shivered  with  fear.  They 
all  seemed  perfectly  at  home,  with  the  exception 
of  himself. 

Milton  knowing  what  to  expect  smuggled  him 
into  the  chapel  in  the  midst  of  a  crowd  of  five 
or  six  others,  and  thus  he  escaped  the  derisive 
applause  with  which  the  pupils  were  accustomed 
to  greet  each  new-comer  at  the  opening  of  a  term. 
He  gave  one  quick  glance  at  the  rows  of  faces, 
and  shambled  awkwardly  along  to  his  seat  beside 
Milton,  his  eyes  downcast.  He  found  courage 
to  look  around  and  study  his  fellow-students  after 
a  little  and  discovered  that  several  of  them  were 
quite  as  awkward,  quite  as  ill  at  ease  as  himself. 

Milton,  old  pupil  as  he  was  (that  is  to  say,  this 
was  his  second  term),  sat  beside  him  and  indi 
cated  the  seniors  as  they  came  in,  and  among  the 
rest  pointed  out  Radbourn. 

"  He's  the  high  mucky-muck  o'  this  shebang," 
Shep  whispered. 


40  ^    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

"Why  so?"  asked  Bradley,  looking  carefully 
at  the  big,  smooth-faced,  rather  gloomy-looking 
young  fellow. 

Shep  hit  his  own  head  with  his  fist  in  a  com 
ically  significant  gesture.  "  Brains  !  What  d' 
ye  call  'em,  Milt  ?  Correscations  of  the  serry 
beltum." 

Shepard  was  a  short  youth  with  thick  yellow 
hair,  and  a  comically  serious  quality  in  the  twist 
of  his  long  upper  lip. 

Milton  grinned.  "Convolutions  of  the  cere 
brum,  I  s'pose  you're  driving  at.  Shep  comes  to 
school  to  have  fun,"  Milton  explained  to  Bradley. 

"  Chuss,"  said  Shep,  by  which  he  meant  yes  ; 
"an1  I  have  it,  too,  betyerneck.  I  enter  no  plea, 
me  lord  "  — 

There  came  a  burst  of  applause  as  a  tall  and 
attractive  girl  came  in  with  her  arms  laden  down 
with  books.  Her  intellectual  face  lit  up  with  a 
smile  at  the  applause,  and  a  pink  flush  came  into 
her  pale  cheek.  "That's  Miss  Graham,"  whis 
pered  Shepard  ;  "she's  all  bent  up  on  Radbourn." 

The  teachers  came  in,  the  choir  rose  to  sing, 
and  the  exercises  of  the  morning  began.  Bradley 
thought  Miss  Graham,  with  her  heavy-lidded, 
velvety-brown  eyes,  looked  like  Miss  Wilbur. 
Her  eyes  were  darker,  he  decided,  and  she  was 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  41 

taller  and  paler ;  in  fact,  the  resemblance  was 
mainly  in  her  manner  which  had  the  same  dignity 
and  repose. 

At  Milton's  suggestion  Bradley  remained  in  his 
seat  after  the  rest  of  the  pupils  had  marched  out 
to  the  sound  of  the  organ.  Then  Milton  intro 
duced  him  to  the  principal,  who  took  him  by  the 
hand  so  cordially  that  his  embarrassment  was 
gone  in  a  moment.  "Come  and  see  me  at 
eleven,"  he  said.  After  a  short  talk  with  him  in 
his  room  a  couple  hours  later,  his  work  was 
assigned. 

"  You'll  be  in  the  preparatory  department,  Mr. 
Talcott,  but  if  you  care  to  do  extra  work  we  may 
get  you  into  the  junior  class.  Jennings,  look 
after  him  a  little,  won't  you  ?" 

The  principal  was  a  kind  man,  but  he  had  two 
hundred  of  these  rude,  awkward  farmer-boys,  and 
he  could  not  be  expected  to  study  each  one 
closely  enough  to  discover  their  latent  powers. 
Bradley  went  away  down  town  to  buy  his  books, 
with  a  feeling  that  the  smile  of  the  principal  was 
not  genuine,  and  he  felt  also  that  Milton  was  a 
little  ashamed  of  him  here  in  the  town.  Every 
thing  seemed  to  be  going  hard  with  him.  But 
his  hardest  trial  came  when  he  entered  the  class 
room  at  one  o'clock. 


42  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

He  knew  no  one,  of  course,  and  the  long, 
narrow  room  was  filled  with  riotous  boys  and  girls 
all  much  younger  than  himself.  All  the  desks 
seemed  to  be  occupied  and  he  was  obliged  to  run 
the  gauntlet  of  the  entire  class  in  his  search  for  a 
seat.  As  he  walked  down  the  room  so  close  to 
the  wall  that  he  brushed  the  chalk  of  the  black 
board  off  upon  his  shoulder,  he  made  a  really  ludi 
crous  figure.  All  of  his  fine,  free,  unconscious 
grace  was  gone  and  his  strength  of  limb  only 
added  to  his  awkwardness. 

The  girls  were  of  that  age  where  they  find  the 
keenest  delight  in  annoying  a  bashful  fellow  such 
as  they  perceived  this  new-comer  to  be.  His 
hair  had  been  badly  barbered  by  Councill  and  his 
suit  of  cotton  diagonal,  originally  too  small  and 
never  a  fit,  was  now  yellow  on  the  shoulders 
where  the  sun  had  faded  the  analine  dye,  and  his 
trousers  were  so  tight  that  they  clung  to  the  tops 
of  his  great  boots,  exposing  his  huge  feet  in  all 
their  enormity  of  shapeless  housing.  His  large 
hands  protruded  from  his  sleeves  and  were  made 
still  more  noticeable  by  his  evident  loss  of  their 
control. 

"  Picked  too  soon,"  said  Nettie  Russell,  with  a 
vacant  stare  into  space,  whereat  the  rest  shrieked 
with  laughter.  A  great  hot  wave  of  blood  rushed 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  43 

up  over  Bradley,  making  him  dizzy.  He  knew 
that  joke  all  too  well.  He  looked  around  blindly 
for  a  seat.  As  he  stood  there  helpless,  Nettie  hit 
him  with  a  piece  of  chalk  and  someone  threw  the 
eraser  at  his  boots. 

"  Number  twelves,"  said  young  Brown. 

"When  did  it  get  loose?" 

"Does  your  mother  know  you're  out?" 

"Put  your  hat  over  it,"  came  from  all  sides. 

He  saw  an  empty  chair  and  started  to  sit  down, 
but  Nettie  slipped  into  it  before  him.  He 
started  for  her  seat  and  her  brother  Claude  got 
there  apparently  by  mere  accident  just  before 
him.  Bradley  stood  again  indecisively,  not  daring 
to  look  up,  burning  with  rage  and  shame.  Again 
someone  hit  him  with  a  piece  of  chalk,  making  a 
resounding  whack,  and  the  entire  class  roared 
again  in  concert. 

"Why,  its  head  is  wood!"  said  Claude,  in 
apparent  astonishment  at  his  own  discovery. 

Bradley  raised  his  head  for  the  first  time. 
There  came  into  his  eyes  a  look  that  made  Claude 
Russell  tremble.  He  again  approached  an  empty 
chair  and  was  again  forestalled  by  young  Brown. 
With  a  bitter  curse  he  swung  his  great  open 
palm  around  and  laid  his  tormenter  flat  on  the 
floor,  stunned  and  breathless.  A  silence  fell  on 


44  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

the  group.  It  was  as  if  a  lion  had  awakened 
with  a  roar  of  wrath. 

"  Come  on,  all  o'  ye ! "  he  snarled  through  his 
set  teeth,  facing  them  all.  As  he  stood  thus  the 
absurdity  of  his  own  attitude  came  upon  him. 
They  were  only  children,  after  all.  Reeking  with 
the  sweat  of  shame  and  anger  which  burst  from 
his  burning  skin,  he  reached  for  a  chair. 

Nettie,  like  the  little  dare-devil  that  she  was, 
pulled  the  chair  from  under  him,  and  he  saved 
himself  from  falling  only  by  wildly  clutching  the 
desk  before  him.  As  it  was,  he  fell  almost  into 
her  lap  and  everybody  shrieked  with  uncontroll 
able  laughter.  In  the  midst  of  it,  Miss  Clayson, 
the  teacher,  came  hurrying  in  to  silence  the 
tumult,  and  Bradley  rushed  from  the  room  like  a 
bull  from  the  arena,  maddened  with  the  spears  of 
the  toreador.  He  snatched  his  hat  and  coat  from 
the  rack  and  hardly  looked  up  till  he  reached  the 
haven  of  his  little  cellar. 

He  threw  his  cap  on  the  floor  and  for  a  half 
hour  raged  up  and  down  the  floor,  his  mortifica 
tion  and  shame  and  rage  finding  vent  in  a  fit  of 
cursing  such  as  he  had  never  had  in  his  life 
before.  All  awkwardness  was  gone  now.  His 
great  limbs,  supple  and  swift,  clenched,  doubled, 
and  thrust  out  against  the  air  in  unconscious 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  45 

lightning-swift  gestures  that  showed  how  terrible 
he  could  be  when  roused. 

At  last  he  grew  calm  enough  to  sit  down,  and 
then  his  mood  changed  to  the  deepest  dejection. 
He  sank  into  a  measureless  despair.  A  terrible 
ache  came  into  his  throat. 

They  were  right,  he  was  a  great  hulking  fool. 
He  never  could  be  anything  but  a  clod-hopper, 
anyway.  He  looked  down  at  his  great  hand,  at 
his  short  trousers,  and  the  indecent  ugliness  of 
his  horrible  boots,  and  studied  himself  without 
mercy  to  himself.  He  acknowledged  that  they 
were  hideous,  but  he  couldn't  help  it. 

Then  his  mind  took  another  turn  and  he  went 
over  the  history  of  that  suit.  He  didn't  want  it 
when  he  bought  it,  but  he  found  himself  like  wax, 
moulded  by  the  soft,  white,  confidential  hands  of 
the  Jew  salesman,  who  offered  it  to  him  as  a  spe 
cial  favor  below  cost.  In  common  with  other 
young  men  of  his  sort  he  always  felt  under  obli 
gation  to  buy  if  he  went  into  a  store,  even  if 
there  were  nothing  there  that  suited  him.  He 
knew  when  he  'bought  the  suit  and  paid  eleven 
dollars  for  it  that  he  would  always  be  sorry,  and 
its  cheapness  now  appalled  him. 

He  always  swore  at  himself  for  this  v/eakness 
before  the  salesman,  and  yet,  year  by  year  he  had 


46  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

been  cheated  in  the  same  way.  For  the  first 
time,  however,  he  saw  his  clothing  in  all  its 
hideousness.  Those  cruel  girls  and  grinning 
boys  had  shown  him  that  clothes  made  the  man, 
even  in  a  western  school.  The  worst  part  of  it 
was  that  he  had  been  humiliated  by  a  girl  and 
there  was  no  redress.  His  strength  of  limb  was 
useless  here. 

He  sat  there  till  darkness  came  into  his  room. 
He  did  not  replenish  the  coal  in  the  stove  that 
leered  at  him  from  the  two  broken  doors  in  front, 
and  seemed  to  face  him  with  a  crazy,  drunken 
reel  on  its  mis-matched  legs.  He  was  hungry, 
but  he  sat  there  enjoying  in  a  morbid  way  the 
pang  of  hunger.  It  helped  him  someway  to  bear 
the  sting  of  his  defeat. 

It  was  the  darkest  hour  of  his  life.  He  swore 
never  to  go  back  again  to  that  room.  He 
couldn't  face  that  crowd  of  grinning  faces.  He 
turned  hot  and  cold  by  turns  as  he  thought  of 
his  folly.  He  was  a  cursed  fool  for  ever  think 
ing  of  trying  to  do  anything  but  just  dig  away  on 
a  farm.  He  might  have  known  how  it  would  be ; 
he'd  got  behind  and  had  to  be  classed  in  with  the 
children  ;  there  was  no  help  for  it ;  he'd  never  go 
back. 

The  thought  of  Her  came  in  again  and  again, 


A    SPOIL    CF  OFFICE.  47 

but  the  thought  couldn't  help  him.  Her  face 
drove  the  last  of  his  curses  from  his  lips,  but  it 
threw  him  into  a  fathomless  despair,  where  he  no 
longer  defined  his  thoughts  into  words.  Her  face 
shone  like  a  star,  but  it  stood  over  a  bottomless 
rift  in  the  earth  and  showed  how  impassable  its 
yawning  barrier  was. 

There  came  a  whoop  outside  and  a  scramble 
at  the  door  and  somebody  tumbled  into  the  room. 

"Anybody  here  ?" 

"  Hello,  where  are  you,  Brad  ? " 

He  recognized  Milton's  voice.  "  Yes,  I'm  here; 
but  wait  a  minute." 

"  Caesar,  I  guess  we'll  wait !  Break  our  necks 
if  we  don't,"  said  the  other  shadow  whom  he  now 
recognized  as  Shep  Watson.  "  Always  live  in 
the  dark  ? " 

They  waited  while  he  lighted  the  dim  little 
kerosene  lamp  on  the  table.  "  O  conspiracy, 
shamest  thou  to  show  thy  dangerous  brow  by 
night,"  quoted  Shep  in  the  interim. 

"Been  'sleep?"  asked  Milton. 

"No.  Se'  down,  anywheres,"  he  added  on 
second  thought,  as  he  realized  that  chairs  were 
limited. 

"  Say,  Brad,  come  on ;  let's  go  over  t'  the 
society." 


48  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

"I  guess  not,"  said  Brad  sullenly. 

"Why  not?"  asked  Milton,  recognizing  some 
thing  bitter  in  his  voice. 

"Because,  I  aint  got  any  right  to  go.  I  aint 
goin'  t'  school  ag'in.  I'm  goin'  west." 

"Why,  what's  up?" 

"I  aint  a-goin',  that's  all.  I  can't  never  ketch 
up  with  the  rest  of  you  fellers."  His  voice  broke 
a  little,  "an'  it  aint  much  fun  havin'  to  go  in  with 
a  whole  raft  o'  little  boys  and  girls." 

"  Oh,  say  now,  Brad,  I  wouldn't  mind  'em  if  I 
was  you,"  said  Milton,  after  a  pause.  He  had 
the  delicacy  not  to  say  he  had  heard  the  details 
of  Bradley's  experience.  "We  all  have  to  go 
through  'bout  the  same  row  o'  stumps,  don't  we, 
'Shep  ?  The  way  to  do  with  'em  is  to  jest  pay 
no  'tention  to  'em." 

But  the  good-will  and  sympathy  of  the  boys 
could  not  prevail  upon  Bradley  to  go  with  them. 
He  persisted  in  his  determination  to  leave  school. 
And  the  boys  finally  went  out  leaving  him  alone. 
Their  influence  had  been  good,  however;  he  was 
distinctly  less  bitter  after  they  left  him  and  his 
thoughts  went  back  to  Miss  Wilbur.  What  would 
she  think  of  him  if  he  gave  up  all  his  plans 
the  first  day,  simply  because  some  mischievous 
girls  and  boys  had  made  him  absurd  ?  When  he 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  49 

thought  of  her  he  felt  strong  enough  to  go  back, 
but  when  he  thought  of  his  tormentors  and  what 
he  would  be  obliged  to  endure  from  them,  he 
shivered  and  shrank  back  into  despondency. 

He  was  still  fighting  his  battle,  when  a  slow 
step  came  down  the  stairs  ending  in  a  sharp  rap 
upon  the  door.  He  said,  "Come  in,"  and  Rad- 
bourn,  the  most  powerful  and  most  popular  senior, 
entered  the  room.  He  was  a  good  deal  of  an 
autocrat  in  the  town  and  in  the  school,  and  took 
pleasure  in  exercising  his  power  on  behalf  of  some 
poor  devil  like  Bradley  Talcott. 

"Jennings  tells  me  you're  going  to  give  it  up," 
he  said,  without  preliminary  conversation. 

Bradley  nodded  sullenly.  "What's  the  use, 
anyhow?  I  might  as  well.  I'm  too  old,  any 
how." 

Radbourn  looked  at  him  a  moment  in  silence. 
"Put  on  your  hat  and  let's  go  outside,"  he  said  at 
length,  and  there  was  something  in  his  voice  that 
Bradley  obeyed. 

Once  on  the  outside  Radbourn  took  his  arm 
and  they  walked  on  up  the  street  in  silence  for 
some  distance.  It  was  still,  and  clear,  and  frosty, 
and  the  stars  burned  overhead  with  many-colored 
brilliancy. 

"  Now  I  know  all  about  it,  Talcott,  and  I  know 


50  A  SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

just  about  how  you  feel.  But  all  the  same  you 
must  go  back  there  to-morrow  morning." 

"It  aint  no  use  talkin',  I  can't  do  it." 

"  Yes,  you  can.  You  think  you  can't,  but  you 
can.  A  man  can  do  anything  if  he  only  thinks 
he  can  and  tries  hard.  You  can't  afford  to  let  a 
little  thing  like  that  upset  your  plans.  I  under 
stand  your  position  exactly.  You're  at  a  disad 
vantage,"  he  changed  his  pace  suddenly,  stopping 
Bradley.  "Now,  Talcott,  you're  at  a  disadvantage 
with  that  suit.  It  makes  you  look  like  a  gawk, 
when  you're  not.  You're  a  stalwart  fellow,  and  if 
you'll  invest  in  a  new  suit  of  clothes  as  Jennings 
did,  it'll  make  all  the  difference  in  the  world." 

"I  can't  afford  it." 

"No,  that's  a  mistake,  you  can't  afford  not  to 
have  it.  A  good  suit  of  clothes  will  do  more  to 
put  you  on  an  equality  with  the  boys  than  any 
thing  else  you  can  do  for  yourself.  Now  let's 
drop  in  here  to  see  my  friend,  who  keeps  what  you 
need,  and  to-morrow  I'll  call  for  you  and  take  you 
into  the  class  and  introduce  you  to  Miss  Clay- 
son,  and  you'll  be  all  right.  You  didn't  start 
right." 

When  he  walked  in  with  Radbourn  the  next 
morning  and  was  introduced  to  the  teacher,  Nettie 
Russell  stared  in  breathless  astonishmemt.  He 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  61 

was  barbered  and  wore  a  suit  which  showed  his 
splendid  length  and  strength  of  limb. 

"  Well  said  !  Aint  we  a  big  sunflower !  My 
sakes !  aint  we  a-coming  out!"  "No  moon  last 
night."  "Must  'a  ben  a  fire."  "He  got  them 
with  a  basket  and  a  club,"  were  some  of  the 
remarks  he  heard. 

Bradley  felt  the  difference  in  the  atmosphere, 
and  he  walked  to  his  seat  with  a  self-possession 
that  astonished  himself.  And  from  that  time  he 
was  master  of  the  situation.  The  girls  pelted  him 
with  chalk  and  marked  figures  on  his  back,  but  he 
kept  at  his  work.  He  had  a  firm  grip  on  the 
plow-handles  now,  and  he  didn't  look  back.  They 
grew  to  respect  him,  at  length,  and  some  of  the 
girls  distinctly  showed  their  admiration.  Brown 
came  over  to  get  help  on  a  sum  and  so  did  Nettie, 
and  when  he  sat  down  beside  her  she  winked  in 
triumph  at  the  other  girls  while  Bradley  patiently 
tried  to  explain  the  problem  in  algebra  which  was 
his  own  terror. 

He  certainly  was  a  handsome  fellow  in  a  rough- 
angled  way,  and  when  the  boys  found  he  could 
jump  eleven  feet  and  eight  inches  at  a  standing 
jump,  they  no  longer  drew  any  distinctions 
between  his  attainments  in  algebra  and  their  own. 
Neither  did  his  poverty  count  against  him  with 


52  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

them.  He  sawed  wood  in  every  spare  hour  with 
desperate  energy  to  make  up  for  the  sinful  extrava 
gance  of  his  new  fifteen  dollar  suit  of  clothes. 

He  was  sawing  wood  in  an  alley  one  Saturday 
morning  where  he  could  hear  a  girl  singing  in 
a  bird-like  way  that  was  very  charming.  He 
was  tremendously  hungry,  for  he  had  been  at 
work  since  the  first  faint  gray  light,  and  the 
smell  of  breakfast  that  came  to  his  senses  was 
tantalizing. 

He  heard  the  girl's  rapid  feet  moving  about  in 
the  kitchen  and  her  voice  rising  and  falling, 
pausing  and  beginning  again  as  if  she  were  work 
ing  rapidly.  Then  she  fell  silent,  and  he  knew 
she  was  at  breakfast. 

At  last  she  opened  the  door  and  came  out  along 
the  walk  with  a  tablecloth.  She  shook  her  cloth, 
and  then  her  singing  ceased  and  Bradley  went  on 
with  his  work. 

"Hello,  Brad!"  called  a  sudden  voice. 

He  looked  up  and  saw  Nettie  Russell's  roguish 
face  peering  over  the  board  fence. 

"Hello,"  he  replied,  and  stood  an  instant  in 
wordless  surprise.  "  I  didn't  know  you  lived 
there." 

"Well,  I  do.     Aint  tickled  to  death  to  find  it 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  53 

out,  I  s'pose  ?  Say,  you  aint  so  very  mad  at  me, 
are  yeh  ?  "  she  added  insinuatingly. 

He  didn't  know  what  to  say,  so  he  kept  silent. 
He  noticed  for  the  first  time  how  childishly 
round  her  face  was  ! 

She  took  a  new  turn.    "Say,  aint  you  hungry?" 

Bradley  admitted  that  he  had  eaten  an  early 
breakfast.  He  did  not  say  it  was  composed  of 
fried  pork  and  potatoes  and  baker's  bread,  with 
out  tea,  coffee,  or  milk. 

The  girl  seemed  delighted  to  think  he  was 
hungry. 

"You  wait  a  minute,"  she  commanded,  and  her 
smiling  face  disappeared  from  the  top  of  the 
fence.  Brad  went  to  work  to  keep  from  catching 
cold,  wondering  what  she  was  going  to  do.  She 
reappeared  soon  with  a  fat  home-made  sausage 
and  a  couple  of  warm  biscuits  which  she  insisted 
upon  his  taking. 

"  They're  all  buttered  and  —  they've  got  sugar 
on  'em,"  she  whispered  significantly. 

"Say,  you  eat  now,  while  I  saw,"  she  com 
manded,  coming  around  through  the  gate. 

She  had  put  on  her  fascinator  hood,  but  her 
hands  and  wrists  were  bare.  She  struggled  away 
on  a  log,  putting  her  knee  on  it  in  a  comically 
resolute  style. 


64  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

"The  saw  always  goes  crooked,"  she  said  in 
despair.  Bradley  laughed  at  her  heartily. 

"  Say,  do  you  do  this  for  fun  ? "  she  asked, 
stopping  to  puff,  her  cheeks  a  beautiful  pink. 

"No,  I  don't.     I  do  it  because  I'm  obliged  to." 

She  threw  down  the  saw.  "  Well,  that  beats 
me;  I  can't  saw,  but  I  can  cook.  I  made  them 
biscuits."  She  challenged  his  opinion,  as  he  well 
knew. 

"They're  first  rate,"  he  admitted,  and  they 
were  friends.  She  watched  him  eat  with  apparent 
satisfaction. 

"Say,  I  can't  stay  here,  I'll  freeze.  Are  yeh 
going  to  be  here  till  noon  ?  " 

"Yes." 

"Well,  when  I  whistle  you  come  in  and  get 
some  grub,  will  yeh  ? "  Bradley  smiled  back  at 
her  laughing  face. 

"This  ain't  your  folks'  wood  pile." 

"What's  the  difference?"  she  replied.  "You 
jest  come  in,  will  yeh?" 

"Yes,  I'll  come." 

"Like  fun  you  will !     Honest  ? "  she  persisted. 

"Hope  to  die,"  he  said  solemnly. 

"That's  the  checker,"  she  said,  and  disappeared 
with  a  click  of  the  tongue. 

Bradley  worked  away  in  a  glow  of  cheerfulness. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  55 

It  was  astonishing  how  much  this  little  victory 
over  a  roguish  girl  meant  to  him.  He  had 
changed  one  person's  ridicule  to  friendship,  and  it 
seemed  to  be  prophetic  of  other  victories. 

The  time  seemed  very  short  that  forenoon. 
Once  or  twice  Nettie  came  out  to  bring  some 
news  about  the  cooking. 

"  Say,  I'm  making  an  apple  pie.  I'm  a  dandy 
on  pies  and  cakes." 

"I  guess  they  would  be  'pizen  '  cakes." 

She  threw  an  imaginary  club  at  him. 

"Well,  if  that  ain't  the  sickest  old  joke! 
You'll  go  without  any  pie  if  you  get  off  such  a 
thing  again." 

But  as  dinner-time  drew  on  he  felt  more  and 
more  unwilling  to  go  into  the  kitchen. 

He  heard  her  whistle,  but  he  remained  at  the 
saw-horse.  It  would  do  in  the  country,  but  not 
here.  He  had  no  right  to  go  in  there  and 
eat. 

There  was  a  note  of  impatience  in  her  voice 
when  she  looked  over  the  fence  and  said,  "Why 
don't  you  come  ?  " 

"I  dassant !  " 

"  Oh,  bother !     What  y'  'f raid  of  ?  " 

"What  business  have  I  got  to  eat  your  dinner? 
This  aint  your  wood-pile." 
5 


56  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

"Say,  if  you  don't  come  in  I'll  —  I  dunno 
what ! " 

"Bring  it  out  here,  it's  warm." 

"I  won't  do  it;  you've  got  to  come  in  ;  the  old 
man's  gone  up  town  and  mother  won't  throw  you 
out.  There  isn't  anybody  in  the  kitchen.  Come 
on  now,"  she  pleaded. 

Bradley  followed  her  into  the  house,  feeling 
a  good  deal  like  a  very  large  dog,  very  hungry, 
who  had  followed  a  child's  invitation  into  the  par 
lor,  and  felt  out  of  place. 

He  sat  down  by  the  fire,  and  silently  ate  what 
she  placed  before  him,  while  she  chattered  away 
in  high  glee.  When  Mrs.  Russell  came  in,  Nettie 
did  not  take  the  trouble  to  introduce  him  to  her 
mother,  who  moved  about  the  room  in  a  wordless 
way,  smiling  a  little  about  the  eyes.  She  was 
entirely  subject  to  her  daughter.  She  heard 
them  discussing  lessons  and  concluded  they  were 
classmates. 

Bradley  went  back  to  his  wood-sawing  and  soon 
finished  the  job.  As  he  shouldered  his  saw  and 
saw-buck,  Nettie  came  out  and  peered  over  the 
fence  again. 

"  Say,  goin'  to  attend  the  social  Monday  ?  " 

"Guess  not.     I  ain't  much  on  such  things." 

"It's  lots  o'  fun;  we  spin  the  platter  and  all 


A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  67 

kinds  o'  things.  I'm  goin',"  she  looked  archly 
inviting. 

Bradley  colored.  He  was  not  astute,  but  hints 
like  this  were  not  far  from  kicks.  He  looked 
down  at  his  saw  as  he  said,  "  I  guess  I  won't  go, 
I've  got  to  study." 

"Well,  good-by,"  she  said  without  mortifica 
tion.  She  was  so  much  of  a  child  yet  that  she 
could  be  jilted  without  keen  pain.  "See  y'  Mon 
day,"  she  said  as  she  ran  into  the  house. 

Someway  Bradley's  life  was  lightened  by  that 
day's  experience.  He  went  home  to  his  bleak 
little  room  in  a  resolute  mood.  He  sat  down  at 
his  table  upon  which  lay  his  algebra,  determined 
to  prepare  Monday's  lessons,  but  the  pencil  fell 
from  his  hand,  his  head  sank  down  and  lay  upon 
the  open  page  before  him.  Woodsawing  had 
worn  him  down  and  algebra  had  made  him  sleep. 


58  A  SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 


V. 

BRADLEY  RISES   TO  ADDRESS   THE    CARTHAGINIANS. 

HE  was  now  facing  another  terror,  the  Friday 
afternoon  recitals,  in  which  alternate  sections  of 
the  pupils  were  obliged  to  appear  before  the  pub 
lic  in  the  chapel  to  recite  or  read  an  essay.  It 
was  an  ordeal  that  tried  the  souls  of  the  bravest 
of  them  all. 

Unquestionably  it  kept  many  pupils  away. 
Nothing  could  be  more  terrible  to  a  shrinking 
awkward  boy  or  girl  from  a  farm  than  this 
requirement,  to  stand  upon  a  raised  platform  with 
nothing  to  break  the  effect  of  sheer  crucifixion. 
It  was  appalling.  It  was  a  pillory,  a  stake,  a  burn 
ing,  and  yet  there  was  a  fearful  fascination  about 
it,  and  it  was  doubtful  if  a  majority  of  the  stu 
dents  would  have  voted  for  its  abolition.  The 
preps  and  juniors  saw  the  seniors  winning  elec 
trical  applause  from  the  audience  and  fancied  the 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  59 

same  prize  was  within  their  reach.  There  was  no 
surer  or  more  instant  success  to  be  won  than  that 
which  followed  a  splendid  oratorical  effort  on  the 
platform.  It  was  worth  the  cost. 

Each  new-comer  dreaded  it  for  weeks  and 
talked  about  it  constantly.  Bradley,  like  all  the 
rest  before  him,  could  not  eat  a  thing  on  the 
morning  preceding  his  trial,  and  in  fact  had  suf 
fered  a  distinct  loss  of  appetite  from  the  middle 
of  the  week. 

Mary  Barber,  a  tall,  awkward,  badly-dressed 
girl,  met  him  as  he  was  going  up  the  steps  after 
the  first  bell. 

"  Say,  how  you  feelin' !  I've  shook  all  the 
mornin'.  I  don't  know  what  I'm  goin'  to  do. 
I'm  just  sick." 

"Why  don't  you  say  so  an'  get  off?"  Bradley 
suggested. 

"Because  that's  what  I  did  last  time,  and  it 
won't  work  any  more."  The  poor  girl's  teeth 
were  chattering  with  her  fright.  She  laughed  at 
herself  in  an  hysterical  way,  and  wrung  her  hands, 
as  if  with  cold,  and  dropped  back  into  the  broad 
est  kind  of  dialect.  "  Oh,  I  feel  'sif  my  stomach 
was  all  gone." 

Nettie  Russell  regarded  it  all  as  merely  another 
disagreeable  duty  to  be  shirked.  Nothing  troub- 


60  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

led  her  very  much.  "You  just  wait  and  see  how 
I  get  out  of  it,"  she  said,  as  she  passed  by.  At 
two  o'clock  the  principal  came  in,  and  removed 
even  the  small  pulpit,  so  that  nothing  should 
stand  between  the  shrinking  young  orators  and 
the  keen  derisive  eyes  below. 

The  chapel  was  a  very  imposing  structure  to 
Bradley.  It  was  square  and  papered  in  grey- 
white  with  fluted  columns  of  the  Corinthian  order 
of  architecture,  and  that  touch  of  history  and 
romance  did  not  fail  of  its  effect  on  the  country 
boys  fresh  from  the  barn-yard  and  the  corn-rows. 
It  added  to  their  fear  and  self-abasement,  as  they 
rolled  their  slow  eyes  around  and  upward.  The 
audience  consisted  mainly  of  the  pupils  arranged 
according  to  classes,  the  girls  on  the  left  and  the 
boys  on  the  right.  In  addition,  some  of  the 
towns-people,  who  loved  oratory,  or  were  specially 
interested  in  the  speakers  of  the  day,  were  often 
present  to  add  to  the  terror  of  the  occasion. 

Radbourn  came  in  with  Lily  Graham,  talking 
earnestly.  He  was  in  the  same  section  with 
Bradley,  a  fact  which  did  not  cheer  Bradley  at  all. 
Jack  Carver  came  in  with  a  jaunty  air.  His  cuffs 
and  collar  were  linen,  and  his  trousers  were  tailor- 
made,  which  was  distinction  enough  for  him. 
He  had  no  scruples,  therefore,  in  shirking  the 


A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  61 

speaking  with  the  same  indifference  Nettie  Rus 
sell  showed. 

Milton,  who  came  in  the  first  section,  was  jok 
ing  the  rest  upon  their  nervousness. 

"  Say,  when  did  you  eat  y'r  last  meal  ? "  he 
whispered  to  Bradley. 

"Yesterday  morning,"  Bradley  replied,  unable 
to  smile. 

All  the  week  the  members  of  the  last  section 
had  been  prancing  up  and  down  the  various 
rooms  in  boarding-houses,  to  the  deep  disgust  of 
their  fellow  students,  who  mixed  harsh  comments 
throughout  their  practice,  as  they  shouted  in 
thunder  tones : 

"I  came  not  here  to  talk.  ('Then  why  don't 
you  shut  up  ? ')  You  know  too  well  the  story  of 
our  thraldom.  ('You  bet  we  do,  we've  heard  it 
all  the  week.')  The  beams  of  the  setting  sun  fall 
upon  a  slave.  ('Would  a  beam  of  some  sort 
would  fall  on  you.')  O  Rome!  Rome!" — ('Oh, 
go  roam  the  wild  wood.')" 

All  the  week  the  boarding-house  mistresses  had 
pounded  on  the  stove-pipe  to  bring  the  appeal  of 
"  Spartacus  to  the  Romans  "  down  to  a  key  that 
would  not  also  include  all  the  people  in  the  block. 
All  to  no  purpose.  Spartacus  was  aroused,  and 
nothing  but  a  glaive  or  a  battle-axe  could  bring 


62  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

him  to  silence  and  submission.  The  first  section 
now  sat  smiling  grimly.  Their  revenge  was 
coming. 

After  the  choir  had  sung,  the  principal  of  ora 
tory,  note-book  in  hand,  came  down  among  the 
pupils,  and  began  the  fateful  roll-call. 

The  first  name  called  was  Alice  Masters,  an 
ambitious,  but  terribly  plain  and  awkward  girl, 
She  had  not  eaten  anything  since  the  middle  of 
the  week,  and  was  weak  and  nervous  with  fright. 
She  sprang  out  of  her  seat,  white  as  a  dead  per 
son,  and  rushed  up  the  aisle.  As  she  stepped 
upon  the  platform  she  struck  her  toe  and  nearly 
fell.  The  rest  laughed,  some  hysterically,  the 
most  of  them  in  thoughtless  derision.  The  blood 
rushed  into  her  face  and  when  she  turned,  she 
seemed  to  be  masked  in  scarlet.  She  began, 
stammeringly,  her  fingers  playing  nervously  with 
the  seams  of  her  dress. 

"Beside  his  block  the  sculptor — 

'•Beside  his  block — 

"Beside,  the  sculptor  stood  beside" — 

She  could  not  think  of  another  word,  not  one, 
and  she  fell  into  a  horrible  silence,  wringing  her 
hands  piteously.  It  was  impossible  for  her  to  go 
on,  and  impossible  for  her  to  leave  the  floor  till 
the  word  of  release  came. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  63 

"That  will  do,"  said  the  principal  in  calm  un 
concern,  and  she  rushed  from  the  room,  and  the 
next  name  was  called.  At  length  Nettie  Russell 
faced  the  audience,  a  saucy  smile  on  her  lips,  and 
a  defiant  tilt  to  her  nose.  She  spoke  a  verse  of 
"Twinkle,  twinkle,  little  star,"  to  the  vast  delight 
of  the  preps,  who  had  dared  her  to  do  it.  The 
principal  scowled  darkly,  and  put  a  very  emphatic 
black  mark  opposite  her  name. 

As  name  after  name  was  called,  Bradley's  chill 
deepened,  and  the  cold  sweat  broke  out  upon  his 
body.  There  was  a  terrible  weakness  and  nausea 
at  his  stomach,  and  he  drew  long,  shivering  inspi 
rations  like  a  man  facing  an  icy  river,  into  which 
he  must  plunge.  His  hands  shook  till  he  was 
forced  to  grasp  the  desk  to  hide  his  tremor. 

He  was  saved  from  utter  flight  by  Radbourn, 
who  came  before  him.  Whatever  nervousness 
the  big  senior  had  ever  felt,  he  was  well  over 
now,  for  he  walked  calmly  up  the  aisle,  and  took 
his  place  with  easy  dignity.  He  scorned  to 
address  the  Romans,  or  the  men  of  England. 
He  was  always  contemporaneous.  He  usually 
gave  orations  on  political  topics,  or  astounded  his 
teachers  by  giving  a  revolutionary  opinion  of 
some  classic.  No  matter  what  subject  he  dealt 
with,  he  interested  and  held  his  audience.  His 


64  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

earnest  face  and  deep-set  eyes  had  something 
compelling  in  them,  and  his  dignity  and  self- 
possession  in  themselves  fascinated  the  poor  fel 
lows,  who  sat  there  in  deathly  sickness,  shaking 
with  terror. 

Bradley  felt  again  the  fascination  of  an  orator, 
and  again  his  heart  glowed  with  a  secret  feeling 
that  he,  too,  could  be  an  orator  like  that.  He  felt 
strong,  and  cool,  and  hopeful,  while  Radbourn  was 
speaking,  but  afterward  that  horrible,  weakening 
fear  came  back  upon  him. 

He  couldn't  look  at  poor  Harry  Stillman,  who 
came  on  a  few  names  further.  Harry  had 
pounded  away  all  the  week  on  Webster's  reply  to 
Hayne,  and  he  now  stood  forth  in  piteous  con 
trast  to  his  ponderous  theme.  His  thin,  shaking 
legs  toed-in  like  an  Indian's,  and  his  trousers  were 
tight,  and  short,  and  checked,  which  seemed  to 
increase  the  tightness  and  shortness.  He  had 
narrow  shoulders  and  thin,  long  arms,  which  he 
used  like  a  jumping  jack,  each  gesture  being  curi 
ously  unrelated  to  his  facial  expression,  which 
was  mainly  appealing  and  apprehensive.  As 
Shep  Watson  said,  "He  looked  as  if  he  expected 
a  barn  to  fall  on  him." 

At  last  Bradley's  name  was  spoken,  and  he 
rose  in  a  mist.  The  windows  had  disappeared. 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  65 

They  were  mere  blurs  of  light.  As  he  walked  up 
the  aisle  the  floor  fell  away  from  the  soles  of  his 
feet.  He  no  longer  walked,  he  was  a  brain  float 
ing  in  space.  He  made  his  way  to  the  stage 
without  accident,  for  he  had  rehearsed  it  all  so 
many  times  in  his  mind  that  unconscious  cerebra 
tion  attended  to  the  necessary  motions.  When 
he  faced  the  assembly,  he  seemed  facing  a  bound' 
less  sea  of  faces.  They  in  their  turn  were  awed 
by  something  they  saw  in  his  eyes.  His  face  was 
white  and  his  eyes  burned  with  a  singular  light. 
A  mysterious  power  emanated  from  him  as  from 
the  born  orator. 

Like  all  the  rest  he  had  taken  a  theme  that  was 
far  beyond  his  apparent  powers,  and  the  apparent 
comprehension  of  his  audience;  but  they  had 
been  fed  so  long  upon  William  Tell,  Rienzi,  Marc 
Antony  and  Spartacus,  that  every  line  was  famil 
iar.  Nothing  was  too  ponderous,  too  lofty,  too 
peak-addressing  for  them. 

He  mispronounced  the  words,  his  gestures  were 
awkward  and  spasmodic,  but  lofty  emotion  exalted 
him  and  vibrated  in  his  voice.  He  thrilled  every 
heart.  He  had  opened  somewhere,  somehow,  a 
vast  reservoir  of  power.  A  great  calm  fell  upon 
him.  A  wild  joy  of  new-found  strength  that 
awed  and  thrilled  his  own  heart.  It  seemed  as  if 


66  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

a  new  spirit  had  taken  his  flesh.  As  he  went  on 
he  grew  more  dignified  and  graceful.  His  great 
arms  seemed  to  be  gigantic,  as  he  thundered 
against  the  Carthaginians.  Everybody  forgot  his 
dress,  his  freckled  face,  and  when  he  closed,  the 
applause  was  instant  and  generous. 

As  he  walked  back  to  his  seat,  the  exultant 
light  went  out  of  his  eyes,  his  limbs  relaxed,  the 
windows  and  the  sunlight  cleared  to  vulgar  day, 
and  his  face  flushed  with  timidity.  He  sat  down 
with  a  feeling  of  melancholy  in  his  heart,  as  if 
something  divine  had  faded  out  of  his  life. 

But  Radbourn  reached  out  his  hand  in  the 
face  of  the  whole  school  and  said,  "First  rate!" 
The  pupils  had  the  western  love  for  oratory,  and 
several  of  them  crowded  about  to  congratulate  him 
on  his  speech. 

Bradley  did  not  feel  at  all  sure  of  his  success. 
He  had  been  something  alien  to  himself  in  that 
speech,  and  he  could  not  remember  what  he  had 
said  or  done.  He  was  not  at  all  sure  that  he  had 
done  the  right  thing  or  the  best  thing.  He  was 
suspicious  of  his  power  because  he  no  longer  felt 
it.  He  was  like  a  man  who  had  dreamed  of  flying 
and  woke  to  find  himself  paralyzed.  After  his 
triumph  he  was  the  same  great,  awkward,  country 
hired-man. 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  67 

"  Say,  look  here,  Talcott,"  said  Radbourn,  as 
they  met  at  the  door  of  the  chapel  going  out, 
"I'm  going  to  propose  you  as  a  member  of  the 
^Delta ;  come  up  Monday,  and  I'll  put  you 
through." 

"Oh,  they  don't  want  me." 

"Don't  be  so  modest.  They're  in  need  of  just 
such  men.  You'll  be  in  demand  now,  no  fear 
about  that." 

There  was  a  struggle  now  to  get  him  into  the 
societies,  which  were,  as  usual,  bitter  rivals.  He 
was  secretly  anxious  to  be  one  of  the  debaters. 
In  fact  he  had  counted  more  on  that  than  upon 
all  the  rest  of  the  advantages  of  the  school.  He 
thought  it  would  please  Her  better. 

He  joined  the  Delta,  over  which  Radbourn  pre 
sided,  and  wore  the  society  pin  with  genuine 
pride.  He  sat  for  several  meetings  silently  in  his 
seat,  awed  by  the  excessive  formality  of  proceed 
ings,  and  the  strictness  of  the  parliamentary  rules. 
It  was  a  curious  thing  to  see  the  meeting  come 
to  order  out  of  a  chaos  of  wrestling,  shouting, 
singing  members  whose  excess  of  life  filled  the 
room  like  a  crowd  of  prize-fighters. 

Rap!  Rap!  And  the  sound  of  the  gavel 
stilled  the  noise  as  if  each  man  had  received  a 
blow  on  his  head. 


68  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

They  took  their  seats  while  the  stern  president 
remained  standing.  One  final  rap,  and  the  room 
was  perfectly  quiet,  and  every  member  an  inexo 
rable  parliamentarian,  ready  to  question  decisions, 
or  rise  to  points  of  order  at  the  slightest  infrac 
tion  of  Cushing's  manual.  Radbourn  ruled  with 
a  gavel  of  iron,  but  they  all  enjoyed  it  the  more. 
Half  the  fun  and  probably  half  the  benefit  of  the 
society  would  have  been  lost  with  the  loss  of 
order. 

This  strenuous  dignity  awed  Bradley  for  a  time. 
His  fellows  seemed  transformed  into  something 
quite  other  than  their  usual  selves,  into  grave 
law-makers.  This  strangeness  wore  away  after  a 
time  and  he  grew  more  at  ease.  He  began  to 
study  Gushing  along  with  the  rest.  It  laid  the 
foundation  for  a  thorough  knowledge  of  the 
methods  of  conducting  a  meeting,  which  was 
afterward  of  so  much  value  to  him. 

His  first  attempt  at  debating  was  upon  the 
question,  "Should  farmers  be  free  traders?"  a 
question  which  was  introduced  by  Milton,  who 
was  always  attempting  to  introduce  questions 
which  would  strike  fire.  Nothing  pleased  his  fun- 
loving  nature  more  than  to  take  part  in  a  "live 
debate." 

As  real  free  traders  were  scarce,  Mason,  a  bril- 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  69 

liant  young  Democrat,  requested  Radbourn  to 
take  the  side  of  free  trade,  and  he  consented. 
Milton  formed  the  third  part  of  the  free  trade 
cohort.  He  liked  the  fun  of  trying  to  debate  on 
the  opposite  side,  a  thing  which  would  have  been 
impossible  to  Bradley's  more  intense  and  simple- 
hearted  nature.  What  he  believed  he  fought  for. 

Mason  led  off  with  a  discussion  of  the  theory 
of  free  exchange  and  made  a  passionate  plea, 
florid  and  declamatory,  which  gave  Fergusson,  a 
cool,  pointed,  scholarly  Norwegian,  an  excellent 
chance  to  raise  a  laugh.  He  called  the  attention 
of  the  house  to  the  "copperhead  Democracy," 
which  the  gentleman  of  the  opposition  was  preach 
ing.  He  asked  what  the  practical  application 
would  mean.  Plainly  it  meant  cheap  goods. 

"That's  what  we  want,"  interrupted  Mason, 
and  was  silenced  savagely  by  the  chairman. 

"England  would  flood  us  with  cheap  goods." 

"  Let  'em  flood,"  said  somebody  unknown,  and 
the  chairman  was  helpless. 

Fergusson  worked  away  steadily  and  was  called 
down  at  last. 

He  was  distinguished  as  one  of  the  few  men 
who  always  talked  out  his  ten  minutes. 

Radbourn  astonished  them  all  by  saying  with 
absolute  sincerity:  "Free  trade  as  a  theory  is 


70  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

•v 

right.  Considered  as  a  question  of  ethics,  as  a 
question  of  the  trend  of  things,  it's  right.  The 
right  to  trade  is  as  much  my  right,  as  my  right  to 
produce.  The  one  question  is  whether  it  ought 
to  be  put  into  operation  at  once.  There  is  no 
reason  why  the  farmer  should  uphold  protection." 

From  this  on  his  remarks  had  a  mysterious 
quality.  "I'm  a  free  trader,  but  I'm  not  a  Demo 
crat.  Tariff  tinkering  is  not  free  trade,  and  I 
don't  believe  the  Democrats  would  do  any  more 
than  the  Republicans,  but  that  aint  the  question. 
The  question  is  whether  the  farmers  should  be 
free  traders." 

After  the  discussion  along  familiar  lines  had 
taken  place,  Radbourn  resumed  the  chair  and 
called  on  any  one  in  the  room  to  volunteer  a  word 
on  either  side.  "We  would  like  to  hear  from 
Talcott,"  he  said. 

"Talcott,  Talcott,"  called  the  rest. 

Bradley  rose,  as  if  impelled  by  some  irresistible 
power  within  himself.  He  began  stammeringly. 
He  had  but  one  line  of  thought  at  his  command, 
and  that  was  the  line  of  thought  indicated  by 
Miss  Wilbur  in  her  speech  at  the  picnic,  the 
Home  Market  idea,  upon  which  he  had  spent  a 
great  deal  of  thought.  "Mr.  Chairman,  I  don't 
believe  in  free  trade.  I  believe  if  we  had  free 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  71 

trade  it  would  make  us  all  farmers  for  England. 
It  aint  what  we  ought  t'  do.  We've  got  gold  in 
our  hills,  an'  coal  an'  timber  to  manufacture. 
What  we  want  t'  do  is  to  build  up  our  industries ; 
make  a  home  market." 

As  he  went  on  with  these  stock  phrases,  he 
seemed  to  get  hold  of  things  which  before  had 
seemed  out  of  his  reach,  scraps  of  speeches, 
newspaper  comments,  an  astonishing  flood  of 
arguments,  or  at  least  what  he  took  for  argu 
ments,  came  rushing  into  his  mind.  He  reached 
out  his  hands  and  grasped  and  used  phrases  not 
his  own  as  if  they  were  bludgeons.  He  assaulted 
the  opposition  blindly,  but  with  immense  power. 

He  sat  down  amid  loud  applause,  and  young 
Mason  arose  to  close  the  affirmative.  He  was 
sarcastic  to  the  point  of  offence. 

"He  has  said  'em  all,"  he  began,  alluding  to 
Bradley,  "all  the  regulation  arguments  of  Repub 
lican  newspapers.  And  as  for  the  leader  of  the 
opposition,  he  has  got  off  the  usual  sneer  at  cop 
perhead  Democracy.  This  debate  wouldn't  have 
been  complete  without  that  remark  from  my 
esteemed  leader  of  the  opposition.  Where  argu 
ment  fails,  misrepresentations  and  sneers  may  do 
service  with  the  injudicious.  I  trust  the  judges 
will  remember  that  the  argument  has  been  on 


72  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

our  side,  and  the  innuendoes  on  the  side  of  the 
opposition." 

The  verdict  of  the  judges  was  in  favor  of  the 
free  traders,  but  the  decision  of  the  judges  had 
less  effect  on  Bradley  than  the  surprising  revela 
tion  of  Radbourn's  thought.  There  were  phrases 
whose  reach  and  significance  he  did  not  realize  to 
the  full,  but  their  effect  was  not  lost.  He  never 
forgot  such  things. 

He  was  thinking  how  diametrically  opposite 
Miss  Wilbur's  ideas  were,  when  Radbourn  came 
up,  and  said  with  a  significant  smile : 

"Well,  Talcott,  you  did  get  hold  of  all  the 
regulation  stock  material.  The  Home  Market 
idea  is  a  great  field  for  you.  You  think  a  city  is 
of  itself  a  good  thing  ?  You  think  a  city  means 
civilization.  Well,  I  want  to  tell  you,  and  maybe 
you  won't  believe  me,  cities  mean  vice,  and  crime, 
and  poverty,  and  vast  wealth  for  the  few,  and  as 
for  the  Home  Market  idea,  how  would  it  do  to  let 
the  farmer  buy  in  the  same  market  in  which  he 
sells  ?  He  sells  in  the  world's  market,  but  you'd 
force  him  to  buy  in  a  protected  market." 

Radbourn  went  off  with  a  peculiar  smile,  which 
left  Bradley  uncertain  whether  he  was  laughing  at 
him  or  not.  He  began  from  that  moment  to 
overhaul  his  stock  of  phrases,  to  see  if  they  were 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  73 

really  shopworn  and  worthless.  He  was  growing 
marvellously,  his  whole  nature  was  now  awake. 
He  thought,  as  he  sawed  wood  in  the  back  alleys 
of  the  town,  and  at  night  he  toiled  at  his  books. 
Those  were  great  days.  New  powers  were  swiftly 
burgeoning. 

Radbourn  spoke  to  several  of  the  politicians  of 
the  town  about  Bradley. 

"There  is  a  good  deal  in  that  man  Talcott. 
Of  course  he's  just  beginning,  but  you'll  hear 
from  him  on  the  stump.  He  is  an  orator  that 
reaches  people.  He  has  the  advantage  of  most  of 
us ;  he's  in  dead  earnest  when  he's  advocating 
Republicanism." 

Radbourn  had  times  of  saying  things  like  this 
when  his  hearers  didn't  know  what  to  make  of 
him. 

"It's  just  his  way,"  some  one  usually  said,  and 
the  rest  sat  in  silence.  They  didn't  enjoy  it,  but 
as  Radbourn  was  not  running  for  any  office  and 
was  known  to  be  a  powerful  thinker,  they  thought 
it  best  not  to  antagonize  him. 

"I  wonder  if  he  intends  the  law?"  asked  Judge 
Brown. 

"I  see  what  the  Judge  is  driving  at,"  Radbourn 
said  quickly,  "he  thinks  he  can  make  a  Democrat 
of  him." 


74  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

The  group  laughed.  Democrats  were  in  a 
hopeless  minority,  but  the  judge  and  Colonel 
Peavey  never  lost  their  proselyting  zeal. 

"The  Judge  is  always  on  hand  like  a  sore 
thumb,"  said  Amos. 

"The  Judge'll  be  on  the  right  side  of  the  tariff 
one  of  these  fine  days,  and  have  the  laugh  on  the 
lot  of  yeh." 
*    "What  y'  idee  about  that,  Rad?" 

"Good  heavens!  You  don't  expect  to  have 
protection  always,  do  yeh?"  was  his  only  reply. 

A  day  or  two  later  he  said  to  Bradley  — 

"Talcott,  Brown  wants  to  see  you.  He  wants 
to  make  you  a  'lawyer's  hack'!  Now  I'd  say  to 
most  men,  don't  do  it,  but  if  he  offers  to  give  you 
a  place  take  it.  It  won't  be  worse  than  sawing 
wood  thirty  hours  a  week." 

Following  Radbourn's  direction  he  passed  up 
a  narrow,  incredibly  grimy  stairway,  and  knocked 
at  a  door  at  the  end  of  a  hall,  whose  only  light 
came  through  the  letter-slit  in  the  door. 

"Come  in  !"  yelled  a  snarling  voice. 

Bradley  entered  timidly,  for  the  voice  was  not 
at  all  cordial.  The  Judge,  in  his  own  den,  was  a 
different  man  from  the  Judge  at  Robie's  grocery, 
and  this  day  he  was  in  bad  humor.  He  sat  with 
his  heels  on  a  revolving  book-case,  a  law-book 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  f5 

spread  out  on  his  legs,  a  long  pipe  in  his 
hand. 

If  he  uttered  any  words  of  greeting  they  were 
lost  in  the  crescendo  growl  of  a  fat  bull-dog  lying 
in  supple  shining  length  at  his  feet. 

"  Down  with  yeh !  "  he  snarled  at  the  dog,  who 
ceased  his  growling,  but  ran  lightly  and  with  fero 
cious  suggestiveness  toward  Bradley  and  clung  sniff 
ing  about  his  heels. 

"  Si'  down  !  "  the  Judge  said,  indicating  a  chair 
with  his  pipe,  which  he  held  by  the  bowl.  He 
made  no  other  motion. 

Bradley  sat  down.  This  greeting  drove  him 
back  into  his  usual  stubborn  silence.  He  waited 
for  developments,  his  eyes  on  the  dog. 

"  Well,  young  man,  what  can  I  do  for  you  ?  " 
asked  the  lawyer  after  a  long  silence,  during 
which  he  laid  down  one  book,  and  read  a  page  in 
another. 

"  Nothin',  I  guess." 

"Well,  what  the  devil  did  yeh  come  in  here 
for?"  he  inquired,  with  a  glare  of  astonishment. 
"  Want 'o  buy  a  dog?" 

Bradley  was  mad.  "  I  came  because  Radbourn 
sent  me.  I  c'n  git  out  agin,  mighty  quick." 

The  Judge  took  down  his  heels.  "  Oh,  you're 
that  young  orator.  Why  didn't  yeh  say  so,  you 


76  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

damned  young  Indian  ? "  He  now  rose  and 
walked  over  to  the  spittoon  before  going  on. 
Bradley  knew  that  this  rough  tone  was  entirely 
different  from  the  first.  It  was  a  sort  of  affec 
tionate  blackguardism.  "  I  heard  you  speak  last 
Friday.  All  you  need,  young  man,  is  a  chance  to 
swing  y'r  elbows.  You  want  room  according  to 
y'r  strength,  but  you  never'd  find  it  in  the  Repub 
lican  party.  It's  struck  with  the  palsy." 

The  judge  had  been  talking  this  for  two  presi 
dential  campaigns  and  didn't  take  himself  at  all 
seriously. 

"  What  are  you  going  to  do  ?  " 

"I  don't  know,  yet." 

"  Do  you  want  'o  study  law  ? " 

"  I  don't  know,  sir.  Do  you  think  I  can  be  a 
lawyer  ?  " 

"If  you're  not  too  damned  honest.  If  you 
want  'o  try  it,  I'll  make  an  arrangement  with  you, 
that  will  be  better  than  sawing  wood  anyhow, 
this  winter,  and  you  can  keep  right  on  with  your 
studies.  We'll  see  what  can  be  done  next 
year." 

The  old  man  had  taken  a  liking  to  Bradley  on 
account  of  his  oratory,  and  the  possibilities  of 
making  him  a  Democratic  leader  had  really  taken 
possession  of  him.  He  had  no  son  of  his  own, 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  77 

and  he  took  a  deep  interest  in  young  men  of  the 
stamp  of  Milton  and  Bradley. 

After  he  reached  home  that  night,  Bradley 
extended  his  ambitions.  He  dared  to  hope  that 
he  might  be  a  lawyer,  and  an  orator,  which  meant 
also  a  successful  politician  to  him'.  Politics  to 
him,  as  to  most  western  men,  was  the  greatest 
concern  of  life,  and  the  city  of  Washington  the 
Mecca  whose  shining  dome  lured  from  afar.  To 
go  to  Washington  was  equivalent  to  being  born 
again.  "A  man  can  do  anything  if  he  thinks  so 
and  tries  hard,"  he  thought,  following  Radbourn's 
words. 

He  bustled  about  cheerily,  cooking  his  fried 
pototoes  and  scraps  of  meat,  and  boiling  his  tea. 
The  dim  light  made  his  large  face  softer  and 
more  thoughtful  than  it  had  appeared  before,  and 
his  cheerfulness  over  his  lonely  meal  typed  forth 
the  sublime  audacity,  profound  ignorance,  and 
pathetic  faith  with  which  such  a  man  faces  the 
world's  millions  and  dares  to  hope  for  success. 


78  <4   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 


VI. 


BRADLEY  ATTENDS  A  CONVENTION. 

ON  a  dreamful  September  day  of  the  following 
year,  Bradley  was  helping  Milton  Jennings  to  dig 
potatoes.  It  was  nearly  time  for  his  return  to 
school  and  to  Judge  Brown's  office,  and  the  two 
young  men  were  full  of  plans.  Milton  was 
intending  to  go  back  for  another  year,  and  Brad 
ley  intended  to  keep  up  with  his  studies  if  possi 
ble,  and  retain  his  place  with  Brown  also. 

"  Say,"  broke  out  Milton  suddenly,  "  we  ought 
to  attend  this  convention." 

"  What  convention  ? " 

"Why,  the  nominating  convention  at  Rock. 
Father's  going  this  afternoon.  I  never' ve  been. 
Let's  go  with  him." 

"That  won't  dig  taters,"  smiled  Bradley  in  his 
slow  way. 

"Darn  the  taters.  If  we're  goin'  into  politics 
we  want  'o  know  all  about  things." 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  79 

"  That's  so.  I  would  like  to  go  if  your  father'll 
let  us  off  on  the  taters." 

Mr.  Jennings  made  no  objection.  "It'll  be  a 
farce,  though,  the  whole  thing." 

"Why  so?" 

"I'll  tell  you  on  the  way  clown.  Git  the  team 
ready  and  we'll  take  neighbor  Councill  in." 

Bradley  listened  to  Mr.  Jennings'  explanation 
with  an  interest  born  of  his  expanding  ambition. 
His  marvellously  retentive  mind  absorbed  every 
detail  and  the  situation  cleared  in  his  mind. 

For  sixteen  years  the  affairs  of  the  country  had 
been  managed  by  a  group  of  persuasive,  well- 
dressed  citizens  of  Rock  River,  who  played  into 
each  other's  hands  and  juggled  with  the  county's 
money  with  such  adroitness  and  address  that  their 
reign  seemed  hopelessly  permanent  to  the  discon 
tented  and  suspicious  farmers  of  the  county. 
Year  after  year  they  saw  these  gentlemen  build 
ing  new  houses,  opening  banks,  and  buying  in 
farm  mortgages  "all  out  of  the  county,"  many 
grangers  asserted. 

Year  after  year  the  convention  assembled,  and 
year  after  year  the  delegates  from  the  rural  town 
ships  came  down  to  find  their  duties  purely  per 
functory,  simply  to  fill  up  the  seats.  They  always 
found  the  slate  made  up  and  fine  speakers  ready 


80  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

to  put  it  through  with  a  rush  of  ready  applause, 
before  which  the  slower-spoken,  disorganized 
farmers  were  well-nigh  helpless.  It  was  a  case  of 
perfect  organization  against  disorganization  and 
mutual  distrust.  Banded  officialism  fighting  to 
keep  its  place  against  the  demands  of  a  disorgan 
ized  righteous  mob  of  citizens.  Office  is  always 
a  trained  command.  The  intrenched  minority  is 
capable  of  a  sort  of  rock-like  resistance. 

Rock  River  and  its  neighboring  village  of 
Cedarville,  by  pooling  together  could  tie  the  con 
vention,  and  in  addition  to  these  towns  they 
always  controlled  several  of  the  outlying  town 
ships  by  judicious  flattery  of  their  self-constituted 
managers,  who  were  given  small  favors,  put  on 
the  central  committee,  and  otherwise  made  to  feel 
that  they  were  leading  men  in  the  township ;  and 
it  was  beginning  to  be  stated  that  the  county 
treasurer  had  regularly  bribed  other  influential 
whippers-in,  by  an  amiable  remission  of  taxes. 

"Why  don't  you  fight  'em?"  asked  Milton, 
after  Mr.  Jennings  had  covered  the  whole  ground 
thoroughly. 

Councill  laughed.  "We've  been  a-fightin'  um  ; 
suppose  you  try." 

"Give  us  a  chance,  and  we'll  do  our  part. 
Won't  we,  Brad?" 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  81 

Bradley  nodded,  and  so  committed  himself  to 
the  fight.  He  was  fated  to  begin  his  political 
career  as  an  Independent  Republican. 

On  the  street  they  met  other  leading  grangers 
of  the  county,  and  it  became  evident  that  there 
was  a  deep  feeling  of  resentment  present.  They 
gathered  in  knots  on  the  sidewalks  which  led  up 
under  the  splendid  maples  that  lined  the  sidewalks 
leading  toward  the  court-house. 

The  court-house  was  of  the  usual  pseudo-classic 
style  of  architecture,  that  is  to  say,  it  was  a  brick 
building  with  an  ambitious  facade  of  four  wooden 
fluted  columns.  Its  halls  echoed  to  the  voices 
and  footsteps  of  the  crowd  that  passed  up  its 
broad,  worn  and  grimy  steps  into  the  court-room 
itself,  which  was  grimier  and  more  hopelessly 
filthy  than  the  staircase  with  its  stratified  accumu 
lations  of  cigar  stubs  and  foul  sawdust.  Its  seats 
were  benches  hacked  and  carved  like  the  desks  of 
a  country  schoolhouse.  Nothing  could  be  more 
barren,  more  desolate.  It  had  nothing  to  relieve 
it  save  the  beautiful  stains  of  color  that  seemed 
thrown  upon  the  windows  by  the  crimson  and 
orange  maples  which  stood  in  the  yard. 

They  found  the  room  full  of  delegates,  among 
whom  there  was  going  on  a  great  deal  of  excited 
conversation.  From  a  side  room  near  the  Judge's 


82  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

bench  there  issued,  from  time  to  time,  messengers 
who  came  out  among  the  general  mob,  and  invited 
certain  flattered  and  useful  delegates  to  come  in 
and  meet  with  the  central  committee.  There  was 
plainly  a  division  in  the  house. 

"The  rusty  cusses  are  on  their  ears  to-day," 
said  Milton,  "and  there's  going  to  be  fun."  His 
blue  eyes  were  beaming  with  laughter,  and  his 
quick  wit  kept  those  who  were  within  hearing  on 
the  broad  grin." 

"Goin'  to  down  'em  t'  day?"  he  asked  of 
Councill. 

"We're  goin'  t'  try." 

In  one  dishonest  way  or  another  the  ring  had 
kept  its  hold  upon  the  county,  notwithstanding 
all  criticism,  and  now  came  to  the  struggle  with 
smiling  confidence.  They  secured  the  chairman 
by  the  ready-made  quick  vote,  by  acclamation 
for  re-election.  The  president  then  appointed 
the  committee  upon  credentials  and  upon  nomin 
ations,  and  the  work  of  the  convention  was 
opened. 

The  committee  on  nominations,  in  due  course 
presented  its  slate  as  usual,  but  here  the  real 
battle  began.  Bradley  suddenly  found  himself 
tense  with  interest.  His  ancestry  must  have  been 
a  race  of  orators  and  politicians,  for  the  atmos- 


A    SPOIL  'OF  OFFICE.  83 

phere  of  the  convention  roused  him  till  it  trans 
formed  him. 

Here  was  the  real  thing.  No  mere  debate,  but 
a  fight.  There  was  battle  in  the  air,  now  blue 
with  smoke  and  rank  with  the  reek  of  tobacco. 
There  was  fight  in  the  poise  of  the  grizzled  heads 
and  rusty,  yellow  shoulders  of  the  farmers  who 
had  now  fallen  into  perfect  silence.  In  looking 
over  them  one  might  have  been  reminded  of  a 
field  of  yellow-gray  boulders. 

Colonel  Russell  moved  the  election  of  the  entire 
slate,  as  presented  by  the  nominating  committee, 
in  whom,  he  said,  the  convention  had  the  utmost 
confidence.  Four  or  five  farmers  sprang  to  their 
feet  instantly  and  Osmond  Deering  got  the  floor. 
When  he  began  speaking  the  loafers  in  the  gallery 
stopped  their  chewing  in  excess  of  interest.  He 
was  one  of  the  most  influential  men  in  the 
county. 

"  Mr.  President,"  he  began  in  his  mild  way,  "  I 
don't  want  to  seem  captious  about  this  matter, 
but  I  want  to  remind  this  convention  that  this  is 
the  eighth-year  that  almost  the  same  identical  slate 
has  been  presented  to  the  farmers  of  Rock  County 
and  passed  against  our  wishes.  It  isn't  right  that 
it  should  pass  again.  It  sha'n't  pass  without  my 
protest."  Applause.  "  This  convention  has  been 


84  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

robbed  of  its  right  to  nominate  every  year,  and 
every  year  we've  gone  home  feeling  we've  been 
made  cat's  paws  of,  for  the  benefit  of  a  few  citi 
zens  of  Rock  River.  I  protest  against  the  slate. 
I  claim  the  right  to  nominate  my  man.  I  don't 
intend  to  have  a  committee  empowered  to  take 
away  my  rights  to  " — 

The  opposition  raised  a  clamor,  "Question! 
Question ! "  attempting  to  force  a  vote,  but  the 
old  man,  carried  out  of  himself  by  his  excitement, 
shook  his  broad  flat  hand  in  the  air,  and  cried  : 
"I  have  the  floor,  gentlemen,  and  I  propose  to 
keep  it."  The  farmers  applauded.  "I  say  to  this 
convention,  vote  down  this  motion  and  set  down 
on  the  old-fashioned  slate-making  committee  busi 
ness.  It  aint  just,  it  aint  right,  and  I  protest 
against  it." 

He  sat  down  to  wild  excitement,  his  supporters 
trying  to  speak,  the  opposition  crying,  "  Question, 
Question."  Several  fiery  speeches  were  made  by 
leading  grangers,  but  they  were  met  by  a  cool, 
smooth  persuasive  speech  from  the  chairman  of 
the  nominating  committee,  who  argued  that  it  was 
not  to  be  supposed  that  this  committee  chosen  by 
this  convention  would  bring  in  a  slate  which 
would  not  be  a  credit  and  honor  to  the  country. 
True,  they  were  mainly  from  Rock  River  and 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  85 

Ceclarville ;  but  it  must  be  remembered  that  the 
population  of  the  county  was  mainly  in  these 
towns,  and  that  no  ticket  could  succeed  which  did 
not  give  a  proper  proportion  of  representation  to 
these  towns.  These  men  could  not  be  surpassed 
in  business  ability.  They  were  old  in  their  office, 
it  was  true,  but  the  affairs  of  the  county  were 
passing  through  a  critical  period  in  their  history, 
and  it  was  an  old  and  well-tried  saying :  "  Never 
swap  horses  in  the  midst  of  a  stream,"  anyhow, 
he  was  content  to  leave  the  matter  to  the  vote  of 
this  convention. 

The  vote  carried  the  slate  through  by  a  small 
majority,  leaving  the  farmers  again  stunned  and 
helpless,  and  the  further  business  of  the  conven 
tion  was  to  restore  peace  and  good-will,  as  far  as 
possible  among  the  members.  It  was  amazing  to 
Bradley  to  find  how  easily  he  could  be  swayed  by 
the  plausible  speeches  of  the  gentlemanly  chair 
man  of  the  nominating  committee.  It  was  a 
great  lesson  to  him  in  the  power  of  oratory.  The 
slate  was  put  through  simply  by  the  address  of 
the  chairman  of  the  committee. 

On  the  way  out  they  met  Councill  and  Jen 
nings  walking  out  with  Chairman  Russell,  who 
had  his  hand  on  a  shoulder  of  each,  and  was  say 
ing,  with  beautiful  candor  and  joviality:  "Well, 


86  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

we  beat  you  again.  It's  all  fair  in  politics,  you 
know." 

"Yes,  but  it's  the  last  time,"  said  Jennings, 
who  refused  to  smile.  "We  can't  give  this  the 
go-by." 

"Oh,  well,  now,  neighbor  Jennings,  you  mustn't 
take  it  too  hard ;  you  know  these  men  are  good 
capable  men." 

"They  are  capable  enough,"  put  in  Deering, 
"but  we  want  a  change." 

"Then  make  it,"  laughed  Russell,  good-na 
turedly  defiant. 

"We  will  make  it,  bet  y'r  boots,"  said  Amos 
Ridings. 

"Let's  see  yeh,"  was  Russell's  parting  word, 
delivered  with  a  jaunty  wave  of  his  hand. 

The  farmers  rode  home  full  of  smoldering 
wrath.  They  were  in  fighting  humor,  and  only 
needed  an  organizer  to  become  a  dangerous  force. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  87 


VII. 

THE    FARMERS    OUST    THE    RING. 

THE  following  Saturday  Bradley,  who  was  still 
at  work  with  Milton,  saw  Amos  Ridings  gallop  up 
and  dismount  at  the  gate,  and  call  Jennings  out, 
and  during  the  next  two  hours,  every  time  he 
looked  up  he  saw  them  in  deep  discussion  out  by 
the  pig  pen.  Part  of  the  time  Jennings  faced 
Amos,  who  leaned  against  the  fence  and  whittled 
a  stick,  and  part  of  the  time  he  talked  to  Jen 
nings  who  leaned  back  against  the  fence  on  his 
elbows,  and  studied  Amos  whittling  the  rail. 
Mrs.  Jennings  at  last  called  them  all  to  din 
ner,  and  still  the  question  remained  apparently 
unsolved,  though  they  changed  the  conversation 
to  crops  and  the  price  of  wheat. 

"  Brad,  set  down  here  and  make  a  lot  o'  copies 
of  this  call.  Milt,  you  help  him." 

The  call  read : 
7 


88  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

"A  NEW  DEAL.     REFORM  IN  COUNTY  POLITICS." 

"  A  mass  convention  of  the  citizens  of  Rock  County  will  be 
held  at  Rock  Creek  Grove  on  September  28th,  for  the  purpose  of 
nominating  a  people's  ticket.  All  who  favor  reform  in  politics 
and  rebel  against  the  ring-rule  of  our  county  officers  are  invited 
to  be  present.  Per  order, 

AMOS  RIDINGS, 
JOHN  JENNINGS, 
WILLIAM  COUNCILL, 

People's  Committee. 

"What's  all  this?"  asked  Milton  of  his  father. 

"  We're  going  to  have  a  convention  of  our 
own." 

"We're  on  the  war  path,"  said  Amos  grimly. 
"  We'll  make  them  fellers  think  hell's  t'  pay  and 
no  pitch  hot." 

After  dinner  Amos  took  a  roll  of  the  copies  of 
the  call  and  rode  away  to  the  north,  and  Jennings 
hitched  up  his  team  and  drove  away  to  the  south. 
Milton  and  Bradley  went  back  to  their  corn-husk 
ing,  feeling  that  they  were  "  small  petaters." 

"They  don't  intend  to  let  us  into  it,  that's 
dead  sure,"  said  Milton.  "All  the  samee,  I  know 
the  scheme.  They're  going  to  bolt  the  conven 
tion,  and  there'll  be  fun  in  the  air." 

The  county  woke  up  the  next  morning  to  find 
its  schoolhouse  doors  proclaiming  a  revolt  of  the 
farmers,  and  the  new  deal  was  the  talk  of  the 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  89 

county.  It  was  the  grange  that  had  made  this 
revolt  possible.  This  general  intelligence  and 
self-qognizance  was  the  direct  result  of  the  work 
of  the  grange.  It  had  brought  the  farmers 
together,  and  had  made  them  acquainted  with  their 
own  men,  their  own  leaders,  and  when  they  came 
together  a  few  days  later,  under  the  open  sky, 
like  the  Saxon  thanes  of  old,  there  was  a  spirit  of 
rebellion  in  the  air  that  made  every  man  look  his 
neighbor  in  the  face  with  exultation. 

It  was  a  perfectly  Democratic  meeting.  They 
came  together  that  beautiful  September  day, 
under  the  great  oaks,  a  witenagemote  of  serious, 
liberty-loving  men,  ready  to  follow  wherever  their 
leaders  pointed. 

Amos  Ridings  was  the  chairman,  tall,  grim- 
lipped  and  earnest-eyed.  His  curt  speech  carried 
the  convention  with  him.  His  platform  was  a 
wagon  box,  and  he  stood  there  with  his  hat  off, 
the  sun  falling  upon  his  shock  of  close-clipped 
stiff  hair,  making  a  powerful  and  resolute  figure 
with  a  touch  of  poetry  in  his  face. 

"  Fellow-citizens,  we've  come  together  here 
to-day  to  organize  to  oust  the  ring  that  has  held 
our  county  affairs  in  their  hands  so  long.  We 
can  oust  them  if  we'll  stand  together.  If  we 
don't,  we  can't.  I  believe  we  will  stand  together. 


90  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

The  grange  has  learned  us  something.  It's  made 
us  better  acquainted  with  each  other.  An'  the 
time  has  come  f'r  a  fight.  The  first  thing  is 
a  permanent  chairman.  Who'll  y'  have  for 
chairman  ?" 

"  I  nominate  Amos  Ridings." 

"  Second  the  motion,"  cried  two  voices  in 
quick  succession. 

The  chairman's  grim  visage  did  not  relax.  He 
had  no  time  for  false  delicacy.  "  Are  y'  ready  f'r 
the  question  ? " 

"  Yes,  yes,"  shouted  the  crowd. 

"All  in  favor,  say  'Aye'." 

There  was  a  vast  shout  of  approval. 

Contrary  minds  '  No  !     It's  a  vote." 

The  other  officers  were  elected  in  the  same 
way.  They  were  there  for  business.  They  passed 
immediately  to  the  nominations,  and  there  was 
the  same  unanimity  all  down  the  ticket  until  the 
nominations  for  the  county  auditor  began. 

A  small  man  lifted  his  hand  and  cried,  "I  nom 
inate  James  McGann  of  Rock  for  auditor." 

There  was  a  little  silence  followed  by  murmurs 
of  disapproval.  The  first  false  note  had  been 
struck.  Someone  seconded  the  motion.  The 
chairman's  gavel  fell. 

"I  want  to  ask  the  secretary  to  take  the  chair 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  91 

for  a  few  minutes,"  he  said,  and  there  was  some 
thing  in  his  voice  that  meant  business.  Some 
thing  ominous.  The  delegates  pressed  closer. 
The  secretary  took  the  chair.  "I've  got  some 
thing  to  say  right  here,"  Ridings  began. 

"  Fellow-citizens,  we're  here  in  a  big  fight.  We 
can't  afford  t'  make  any  mistake.  We  can't  afford 
to  be  tolled  off  the  track  by  a  bag  of  anise  seed. 
Who  is  the  man  makin'  this  motion  ?  Does  any 
body  know  him  ?  I  do.  He's  a  spy.  He's  sent 
here  f'r  a  purpose.  Suppose  he'd  nominated  a 
better  man  ?  His  motion  would  have  been  out  of 
place.  His  nomination  of  Jim  McGann  was  a 
trick.  Jim  McGann  can't  git  a  pound  o'  sugar  on 
credit  in  his  own  town.  He  never  had  any  credit 
n'r  influence.  Why  was  he  nominated  ?  Simply 
to  make  us  ridiculous  —  a  laughin'  stock.  I  want 
to  put  you  on  your  guard.  If  we  win  it's  got  t' 
be  in  a  straight  fight.  That's  all  I've  got  t'  say. 
Recognize  no  nomination  that  don't  come  from  a 
man  y'  know." 

The  convention  clamored  its  approval,  and  the 
small  spy  and  trickster  slunk  away  and  disap 
peared.  There  was  a  certain  majesty  in  the  action 
of  this  group  of  roused  farmers.  Nominations 
were  seconded  and  ratified  with  shouts,  even  down 
through  the  most  important  officers  in  the  county 


92  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

and  town.  It  was  magnificent  to  see  how  deep 
was  the  harmony  of  action. 

Deering  was  forced  to  accept  the  nomination 
for  treasurer  by  this  feeling  of  the  unanimity 
and  genuineness  which  pervaded  each  succeeding 
action,  and  when  the  vote  was  called,  and  the  men 
thrust  their  hands  in  the  air  and  shouted,  they 
had  something  of  the  same  feeling  that  lay  at  the 
heart  of  the  men  of  Uri,  and  Unterwalden,  and 
Schwyz  when  they  shouted  their  votes  together 
in  the  valley  with  the  mighty  cordon  of  guarding 
mountains  around  them. 

The  grange  had  made  this  convention  and  its 
magnificent  action  possible.  Each  leading  mem 
ber  of  the  grange,  through  its  festivals,  and  pic 
nics,  and  institutes,  had  become  known  to  the 
rest,  and  they  were  able  to  choose  their  leaders 
instantly.  The  ticket  as  it  stood  was  very  strong. 
Deering  as  treasurer  and  Councill  as  sheriff, 
insured  success  so  far  as  these  officers  were 
concerned. 

On  the  way  home  Councill  shouted  back  at  the 
young  men  riding  with  Jennings  :  "  Now's  a  good 
time  for  you  young  chaps  t'  take  the  field  and 
lectioneer  while  we  nominees  wear  biled  collars, 
and  set  in  the  parlor  winder." 

"What  you  want  to  do  is  stay  at  home  and  dig 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  93 

taters,"  shouted  Milton.  "A  biled  collar  would 
defeat  any  one  of  yeh,  dead  sure." 

This  was,  in  fact,  the  plan  of  the  campaign. 

Amos  Ridings  assumed  practical  direction  of 
it. 

"Now  we  don't  want  a  candidate  to  go  out  — 
not  once.  Every  man  stay  at  home  and  not  open 
his  head.  We'll  do  the  work.  You  tend  your 
knittin'  and  we'll  elect  yeh." 

The  boys  went  out  on  Friday  nights,  to  election 
eer  for  the  Granger  ticket,  as  it  was  called. 

"It's  boss  fun,"  Milton  said  to  his  father. 
"  It's  ahead  o'  husking  corn.  It  does  tickle  me  to 
see  the  future  sheriff  of  the  county  diggin'  per- 
taters  while  I'm  ridin'  around  in  my  best  clo'es 
makin'  speeches." 

"We'll  have  the  whip-row  on  you  when  we  get 
into  office,"  replied  Mr.  Jennings. 

"Don't  crow  till  y'r  out  o'  the  woods,"  laughed 
Milton. 

The  boys  really  aroused  considerable  enthusi 
asm,  and  each  had  stanch  admirers,  though  they 
were  entirely  opposed  in  style.  Milton  told  a 
great  many  funny  stories,  and  went  off  on  what 
he  considered  to  be  the  most  approved  oratorical 
flights.  He  called  on  the  farmers  to  stand 
together.  He  asked  them  whether  it  was  fair 


94  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

that  the   town   should    have    all    the    offices.     In 
short,  he  made  very  taking  political  harangues. 

Bradley  always  arose  in  the  same  slow  way. 
He  was  a  little  heavy  in  getting  started.  His 
deep  voice  was  thick  and  husky  at  beginning,  but 
cleared  as  he  went  on.  His  words  came  slowly, 
as  if  each  were  an  iron  weight.  He  dealt  in 
facts  —  or  what  he  believed  to  be  facts.  He  had 
carefully  collated  certain  charges  which  had  been 
made  against  the  officials  of  the  county,  and  in 
his  perfectly  fearless  way  of  stating  them,  there 
was  immense  power. 


A  SPOIL  OF  OFFICE.  95 


VIII. 
BRADLEY  OFFENDS  NETTIE'S  FATHER. 

IT  was  a  singular  thing  to  see  the  farmers  sud 
denly  begin  to  ask  themselves  why  they  should 
stand  quietly  by  while  the  townsmen  monopolized 
all  the  offices  and  defied  the  farmers  to  make  a 
change.  They  laughed  at  the  charges  of  chican 
ery  in  office,  and  openly  said  that  "  no  man  with 
corns  on  his  hands  and  hayseed  in  his  hair  can  be 
elected  to  office  in  the  county."  This  speech 
was  of  the  greatest  value  to  the  young  champions. 
It  became  their  text. 

The  speech  that  made  Bradley  famous  among 
the  farmers  came  about  the  middle  of  October. 
It  was  an  open-air  meeting  in  the  Cottonwood 
township,  one  Saturday  afternoon.  He  and  Mil 
ton  drove  out  to  their  appointment  in  a  carriage 
which  Milton  had  borrowed.  It  was  a  superb 
Indian  summer  day,  and  they  were  both  very 
happy.  Each  had  his  individual  way  of  showing 
it.  Milton  put  his  heels  on  the  dash-board,  and 


96  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

sung  or  whistled  all  the  way  out,  stopping  only 
occasionally  to  say  : 

"  Aint  this  boss  ?  This  is  what  I  call  doin'  a 
thing  up  brown.  Wish  I  could  do  this  for  a 
stiddy  business." 

Bradley  smiled  at  his  companion's  fun.  He 
felt  the  pride  and  glory  of  it  all,  but  he  couldn't 
express  it  as  Milton  did.  It  was  such  a  magnifi 
cent  thing  to  be  thus  selected  to  push  on  a  cam 
paign.  The  mere  idea  of  the  crowd  waiting  out 
there  for  their  arrival  had  something  royal  in 
it.  And  then  this  riding  away  into  a  practically 
unknown  part  of  the  county  to  speak  before 
perfect  strangers  had  an  epic  quality.  Great 
things  seemed  coming  to  him. 

They  found  quite  an  assembly  of  farmers,  not 
withstanding  the  busy  season.  It  showed  how 
deep  was  the  interest  in  the  campaign,  and  Milton 
commented  upon  it  in  beginning  his  speech. 

"If  a  farmer  ever  gets  his  share  of  things,  he's 
got  to  take  time  to  turn  out  to  caucuses  and  meet 
ings,  and  especially  he's  got  to  stop  work  and 
vote." 

Bradley  arose  after  Milton's  speech,  which 
pleased  the  farmers  with  its  shrewdness  and  drol 
lery,  feeling  at  a  great  disadvantage. 

"My  colleague,"  he  began  (preserving  the  for- 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  97 

mality  of  the  Delta  Society  debates),  "has  told 
you  of  the  ring  that  has  controlled  the  officers  of 
this  county  for  so  long,  but  he  hasn't  told  you  of 
the  inside  facts.  I  aint  fightin'  in  this  campaign 
to  put  the  town  people  out  and  the  farmers  in ; 
I'm  fightin'  to  put  thieves  out  and  honest  men 
in." 

This  was  a  blow  straight  out  from  the  shoulder 
and  was  followed  by  great  applause.  But  a  few 
voices  cried  : 

"Take  that  back!" 

"  I  won't  take  anything  back  that  I  know  is  the 
truth." 

"Yes,  you  will!  That's  a  lie,  an'  you  know 
it ! "  shouted  an  excited  man  a  short  distance 
away. 

"  Let  me  tell  you  a  story,"  Bradley  went  on 
slowly.  "  Last  session  of  court  a  friend  of  mine 
was  on  the  jury.  When  court  adjourned,  he  took 
his  order  on  the  county  to  the  treasurer  and  asked 
for  his  pay.  The  treasurer  said,  'I'm  sorry, 
but  they  aint  any  funds  left  for  the  jurors' 
fees.'" 

"'Can't  you  give  me  some  out  of  some  other 
fund  ? ' " 

"  '  No,  that  won't  do  — can't  do  that.' 

" '  Well,  when  will  yeh  have  some  money  in  ? ' 


98  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

'"Well,  it's  hard  tellin'  —  in  two  or  three 
months,  probably.' 

"'Well,  I'd  like  the  money  on  this  order.  I 
need  it.  Can't  I  git  somebody  to  cash  it  for  me  ? ' 

" '  Well,  I  dunno.  I  guess  they'll  take  it  at  the 
store.  My  brother  John  might  cash  it  —  possi 
bly,  as  an  accommodation.' 

"  Well,  my  friend  goes  over  to  Brother  John's 
bank,  and  Brother  John  cashes  the  order,  and 
gives  him  eight  dollars  for  it.  Brother  John  then 
turns  in  the  order  to  the  treasurer  and  gets 
twelve  dollars  for  it,  and  then  they  'divvy'  on  the 
thing.  Now,  how's  that  for  a  nice  game  ? " 

"It's  a  damn  He!"  shouted  an  excited  man  in 
the  foreground.  He  had  his  sleeves  rolled  up 
and  kept  up  a  continual  muttering  growl. 

"It's  the  truth,"  repeated  Bradley.  There  was 
a  strong  Russell  contingent  in  the  meeting,  and 
they  were  full  of  fight.  The  angry  man  in  front 
repeated  his  shout : 

"That's  a  lie!  Take  it  back,  or  I'll  yank  yeh 
off'n  that  wagon  box." 

"  Come  and  try  it,"  said  Bradley,  throwing  off 
his  coat. 

The  excitement  had  reached  the  point  where 
blows  begin.  Several  irresponsible  fellows  were 
urging  their  companion  on. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  99 

"Jump'im!  Jump 'im,  Hank  !  We'll  see  fair 
play." 

"  Stand  yer  ground,  Brad ! "  shouted  the 
friends  of  the  speaker.  "We'll  see  they  come 
one  at  a  time." 

"  Oh,  see  here  !  No  fightin',"  shouted  others. 
The  man  Hank  was  not  to  be  silenced.  He 
pushed  his  way  to  the  wagon-wheel  and  shook  his 
extended  fist  at  the  speaker. 

"  Take  that  back,  you  "  — 

Bradley  caught  him  by  his  uplifted  wrist,  and 
bracing  himself  against  the  wheel,  jerked  his 
assailant  into  the  wagon-box,  and  tumbled  him 
out  in  a  disjointed  heap  on  the  other  side  before 
he  could  collect  his  scattered  wits. 

Then  Bradley  stood  up  in  his  splendid  height 
and  breadth.  "  I  say  it's  the  truth  ;  and  if  there 
are  any  more  rowdies  who  want  'o  try  yankin'  me 
out  o'  this  wagon,  now's  your  time.  You  never'll 
have  a  better  chance."  Nobody  seemed  anxious. 
The  cheers  of  the  crowd  and  the  young  orator's 
determined  attitude  discouraged  them.  "Now 
I'll  tell  yeh  who  the  man  was  who  presented  that 
order.  It  was  William  Bacon  ;  mebbe  some  o' 
you  fellers  want  to  tell  him  he  lies." 

He  finished  his  speech  without  any  marked 
interruption,  and  was  roundly  congratulated  by 


100  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

the  farmers.  On  the  way  back  to  Rock  River, 
however,  he  seemed  very  much  depressed,  while 
Milton  exulted  over  it  all. 

"Gosh!  I  wish  I  had  your  muscle,  old  man  !  I 
ain't  worth  a  cent  in  things  like  that.  Caesar! 
But  you  snatched  him  bald-headed." 

"Makes  me  feel  sick,"  Bradley  said.  "I  ain't 
had  but  one  squabble  before  since  I  was  a  boy. 
It  makes  me  feel  like  a  plug-ugly." 

Milton  was  delighted  with  it  all.  It  made  such 
a  capital  story  to  tell !  "  Say  Brad,  do  you  know 
what  I  thought  of  when  you  was  yankin'  that  fel 
ler  over  the  wheel  ?  Scaldin'  hogs  !  You  pulled 
on  him  just  as  if  he  was  a  three-hundred  pound 
shote.  It  was  funny  as  all  time  ! " 

But  Bradley  had  trouble  in  going  to  sleep  that 
night,  thinking  about  it.  He  was  wondering  what 
She  would  have  thought  of  him  in  that  disgraceful 
row.  He  tried  to  remember  whether  he  swore  or 
not.  He  felt,  even  in  the  darkness,  her  grave, 
sweet  eyes  fixed  upon  him  in  a  sorrowful,  disap 
pointed  way,  and  it  made  him  groan  and  turn  his 
face  to  the  wall,  to  escape  the  picture  of  himself 
standing  there  in  the  wagon,  with  his  coat  off, 
shouting  back  at  a  band  of  rowdies. 

But  the  story  spread,  and  it  pleased  the  farmers 
immensely.  The  boldness  of  the  charge  and  the 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  101 

magnificent  muscle  that  backed  it  up  took  hold  of 
the  people's  imagination  strongly,  and  added  very 
greatly  to  his  fame. 

When  the  story  reached  Judge  Brown,  he  was 
deeply  amused.  On  the  following  Monday  morn 
ing,  as  Brad  was  writing  away  busily,  the  Judge 
entered  the  room. 

"Well,  Brad,  they  say  you  called  the  Russells 
thieves." 

"  I  guess  perhaps  I  did." 

"Well,  aint  that  goin'  to  embarrass  you  a  little 
when — when  you're  calling  on  Nettie?" 

"  I  aint  a-goin'  to  call  there  any  more." 

"  Oh,  I  see !  Expect  the  colonel  to  call  on  you, 
eh?" 

"  I  don't  care  what  he  does,"  Bradley  cried, 
turning  and  facing  his  employer.  "I  said  what  I 
know  to  be  the  truth.  I  call  it  thieving,  and  if 
they  don't  like  it,  they  can  hate  it.  I  aint  a-goin' 
to  back  down  an  inch,  as  long  as  I  know  what  I 
know." 

"That's  right!"  chuckled  the  Judge.  As  a 
Democrat,  he  rejoiced  to  see  a  Republican  ring 
assaulted.  "  Go  ahead,  I'll  stand  by  you,  if  they 
try  the  law.'" 


102  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 


IX. 


BRADLEY    MEETS    MRS.    BROWN. 

THOUGH  Bradley  had  called  a  good  many  times 
at  the  Russell  house,  to  accompany  Nettie  to  par 
ties  or  home  from  school,  yet  he  had  never  had 
any  conversation  to  speak  of  with  Russell,  who 
Was  a  large  and  somewhat  pompous  man.  He 
knew  his  place,  as  a  Western  father,  and  never 
interfered  with  his  daughter's  love  affairs.  He 
knew  Bradley  as  a  likely  and  creditable  young 
fellow,  and  besides,  his  experience  with  his  two 
older  daughters  had  taught  him  the  perfect  use- 
lessness  of  trying  to  marry  them  to  suit  himself 
or  his  wife. 

He  was  annoyed  at  this  attack  of  Bradley  upon 
him  and  his  brother,  the  treasurer.  It  was  really 
carrying  things  too  far.  Accustomed  -to  all  sorts 
of  'epithets  and  charges  on  the  part  of  opposing 
candidates,  he  ought  not  to  have  been  so  sensitive 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  103 

to  Bradley's  charge,  but  the  case  was  peculiar. 
It  was  exactly  true,  in  the  first  place,  and  then  it 
came  from  a  young  man  whom  his  daughter  had 
brought  into  the  family,  and  whom  he  had  begun 
to  think  of  as  a  probable  son-in-law. 

On  Tuesday  morning,  just  as  Bradley  was  tum 
bling  his  dishes  into  a  pan  of  hot  water  ("their 
weekly  bath,"  Milton  called  it),  there  came  a 
sharp  knock  on  the  door,  and  a  girl's  voice  called 
out  clearly : 

"  Hello,  Brad  !     Can  I  come  in  ? " 

"Yes,  come  in." 

Nettie  came  in,  her  cheeks  radiant  with  color, 
her  eyes  shining.  "Oh,  washing  your  dishes? 
Wait  a  minute,  I'll  help."  She  flung  off  her 
coat  in  a  helter-skelter  way,  and  rolled  up  her 
sleeves. 

Bradley  expostulated  :  "  No,  no !  Don't  do  that ! 
I'll  have  'em  done  in  a  jiffy.  They  aint  but  a 
few." 

"I'll  wipe  'em,  anyway,"  she  replied.  "Oh, 
fun  !  What  a  towel !  "  she  held  up  the  side  of  a 
flour-sack,  on  which  was  a  firm-name  in  brown 
letters.  She  laughed  in  high  glee.  There  was  a 
delicious  suggestion  in  the  fact  that  she  was 
standing  by  his  side  helping  him  in  his  household 
affairs. 


104  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

Bradley  was  embarrassed,  but  she  chattered 
away,  oblivious  of  space  and  time.  Her  regard 
for  him  had  grown  absolutely  outspoken  and  with 
out  shame.  There  was  something  primitive  and 
savage  in  her  frank  confession  of  her  feelings. 
She  had  come  to  make  all  the  advances  herself, 
in  a  confidence  that  was  at  once  beautiful  and 
pathetic.  She  met  him  in  the  morning  on  the 
way  to  school,  and  clung  to  him  at  night,  and 
made  him  walk  home  with  her.  She  came  after 
noons  with  a  team,  to  take  him  out  driving.  The 
presence  of  the  whole  town  really  made  no  differ 
ence  to  her.  She  took  his  arm  just  the  same, 
proud  and  happy  that  he  permitted  it. 

"Oh,  say,"  she  broke  off  suddenly,  "pa  wants 
to  see  you  about  something.  He  wanted  me  to 
tell  you  to  come  down  to-night."  She  was  dust 
ing  the  floor  at  the  moment,  while  he  was  mov 
ing  the  furniture.  "I  wonder  what  he  wants?" 
she  asked. 

"I  don't  know,"  he  replied,  evasively. 

"Something  about  politics,  I  suppose."  She 
came  over  and  stood  beside  him  in  silence.  She 
was  very  girlish,  in  spite  of  her  assumption  of  a 
young  lady's  dress  and  airs,  and  she  loved  him 
devouringly  She  stood  so  close  to  him  that  she 
could  put  her  hand  on  his,  as  it  lay  on  the  table. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  105 

Her  clear,  sweet  eyes  gazed  at  him  with  the  con 
fidence  and  purity  of  a  child. 

It  was  a  relief  to  Bradley  to  hear  the  last  bell 
ring.  She  withdrew  her  hand  and  threw  down 
the  broom  which  she  had  been  holding  in  her  left 
hand.  "Oh,  that's  the  last  bell.  Help  me  on 
with  my  cloak,  quick  ! "  He  put  her  cloak  on  for 
her.  She  stamped  her  foot  impatiently.  "Pull 
my  hair  outside  !  " 

He  took  her  luxuriant  hair  in  both  his  hands, 
and  pulled  it  outside  the  cloak,  and  fitted  the.  col 
lar  about  her  neck.  She  caught  both  his  hands 
in  hers,  and  looking  up,  laughed  gleefully. 

"  You  dassent  kiss  me  now  !  " 

He  stooped  and  kissed  her  cheek,  and  blushed 
with  shame.  On  the  way  up  the  walk  to  the 
chapel,  he  suffered  an  agony  of  remorse.  He 
felt  dimly  that  he  had  done  his  ideal  an  irrepara 
ble  wrong.  Nettie  talked  on,  not  minding  his 
silence,  looking  up  into  his  face  in  innocent  glee, 
planning  some  new  party  or  moonlit  drive. 

All  that  morning  he  was  too  deep  in  thought 
to  give  attention  to  his  classes,  and  at  noon  he 
avoided  Nettie,  and  went  home  to  think,  but  try 
as  he  might,  something  prevented  him  from  get 
ting  hold  of  the  real  facts  in  the  case. 

He  was  fond  of  Nettie.     She  stood  near  him, 


106  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

an  embodied  passion.  His  love  for  Miss  Wilbur, 
•which  he  had  no  idea  of  calling  love,  was  a  vague 
and  massive  feeling  of  adoration,  entirely  disasso 
ciated  from  the  flesh.  She  stood  for  him  as  the 
embodiment  of  a  world  of  longings  and  aspira 
tions  undeveloped  and  undefined. 

One  thought  was  clear.  He  ought  not  to 
allow  —  that  is  the  way  it  took  shape  in  his 
mind  —  he  ought  not  to  allow  Nettie  to  be  seen 
with  him  so  much,  unless  he  intended  to  marry 
her,  and  he  had  never  thought  of  her  as  a  possible 
wife. 

He  didn't  know  how  to  meet  Russell,  so  put 
off  going  down  to  his  house,  as  he  had  promised. 
He  excused  himself  by  saying  he  was  busy  mov 
ing,  anyway.  He  had  determined  upon  taking  a 
boarding-place  somewhere  in  correspondence  with 
his  change  of  fortunes  and  when  he  had  spoken 
of  it,  the  Judge  had  said  : 

"  Why  not  come  up  to  my  house  ?  Mrs.  Brown 
and  I  get  kind  of  lonesome  sometimes,  and  then 
I  hate  to  milk,  an'  curry  horses,  an'  split  kind 
lings,  always  did.  Come  up  and  try  living  with 
us." 

Bradley  had  accepted  the  offer  with  the  great 
est  delight.  It  meant  a  great  deal  to  him.  It 
took  him  out  of  a  cellar  and  put  him  into  one  of 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  107 

the  finest  houses  in  town  —  albeit  it  was  a  cold 
and  gloomy  house.  It  was  large,  and  white,  and 
square,  with  sharp  gables,  and  its  blinds  were 
always  closed.  He  went  up  to  dinner  that  day 
with  the  judge,  to  meet  Mrs.  Brown,  whom  he 
had  never  seen  ;  nobody  saw  her,  for  she  was  a 
"  perfect  recluse." 

She  looked  at  her  husband  through  her  glasses 
in  a  calm  surprise,  as  he  introduced  Bradley,  and 
stated  he  had  invited  him  to  dinner. 

"Well,  Mr.  Brown,  if  you  will  do  such  things, 
you  must  expect  your  company  to  take  every-day 
fare." 

"  Maybe  our  every-day  fare,  Mrs.  Brown,  will 
be  Sunday  fare  for  this  young  man." 

They  sat  clown  at  the  table,  which  Mrs.  Brown 
waited  upon  herself,  rising  from  her  place  for  the 
tea  or  the  biscuits.  She  said  very  little  there 
after,  but  Bradley  caught  the  gleam  of  her  glasses 
fixed  upon  him  several  times.  She  had  a  beauti 
ful  mouth,  but  the  line  of  her  lips  seemed  to 
indicate  sadness  and  a  determined  silence. 

"Mrs.  Brown,  I  wish  you'd  take  care  of  this 
young  man  for  a  few  weeks.  He's  my  clerk,  and 
I  —  ahem!  —  I  —  suppose  he's  going  to  milk  the 
cow  and  split  the  kindlings  for  me,  to  pay  for  his 
board  in  that  useful  way." 


108  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

She  looked  at  him  again  in  silence,  and  the  line 
of  her  lips  got  a  little  straighter,  as  she  waited 
for  the  Judge  to  go  on. 

"This  young  man  is  going  to  study  law  with 
me,  and  I  hope  to  make  a  great  man  of  him,  Mrs. 
Brown." 

"  Mr.  Brown,  I  wish  you'd  consult  with  me 
once  in  a  while,"  she  said  without  anger. 

"Mrs.  Brown,  it  was  a  case  of  necessity.  I 
was  on  the  point  of  giving  up  the  milking  of  that 
cow,  and  my  back  got  a  crick  in  it  every  time  I 
split  the  kindlings.  I  consider  I've  done  you  a 
benefit  and  myself  a  favor,  Mrs.  Brown." 

She  turned  her  glasses  upon  Bradley  again,  and 
studied  him  in  silence.  She  was  a  very  dignified 
woman  of  fifty.  Her  hair  was  like  wavy  masses 
of  molasses  candy,  and  her  brow  cold  and  placid. 
Her  eyes  could  not  be  seen,  but  her  mouth  and 
chin  were  almost  girlish  in  their  beauty. 

The  Judge  felt  that  he  had  done  a  hazardous 
thing.  He  took  a  new  tone,  his  reminiscent  tone. 
"Mrs.  Brown,  do  you  remember  the  first  time 
you  saw  me?  Well,  I  was  'pirating'  through 
Oberlin — (chopping  wood,  you  remember  we 
didn't  saw  it  in  those  days)  and  living  in  a  cellar, 
just  like  this  young  man.  He's  been  cookin'  his 
own  grub,  just  as  I  did  then,  because  he  hasn't 


A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  109 

any  money  to  pay  for  board.  Now  I  think  we 
ought  to  give  him  a  lift.  Don't  you  think  so, 
Mrs.  Brown?" 

Her  mouth  relaxed  a  little.  The  glasses  turned 
upon  Bradley  again,  and  looked  upon  him  so 
steadily  that  he  was  able  to  see  her  gray  eyes. 

"Mr.  Brown  is  always  doing  things  without  con 
sulting  me,"  she  explained  to  Bradley,  "but  you 
are  welcome,  sir,  if  our  lonesome  house  aint  worse 
than  your  cellar.  Mr.  Brown  very  seldom  takes 
the  trouble  to  explain  what  he  wants  to  do,  but 
I'll  try  to  make  you  feel  at  home,  sir." 

They  ate  the  rest  of  the  meal  in  silence.  The 
Judge  was  evidently  thinking  over  old  times,  and 
it  would  be  very  difficult  to  say  what  his  wife  was 
thinking  of.  At  last  he  rose  saying : 

"  Now  if  you'll  come  out,  I'll  show  you  the  well 
and  the  cow."  As  he  went  by  his  wife's  chair, 
he  stopped  a  moment,  and  said  gently,  "  He'll  do 
us  two  lonely  old  fossils  good,  Elizabeth."  His 
hand  lay  on  her  shoulder  an  instant  as  he  passed, 
and  when  Bradley  went  out  of  the  room,  he  saw 
her  wiping  her  eyes  upon  her  handkerchief,  her 
glasses  in  her  hand. 

The  Judge  coughed  a  little.  "  We  never  had 
but  one  child  —  a  boy.  He  was  killed  while  out 
hunting"  —  he  broke  off  quickly.  "Now  here's 


110  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

the  meal  for  the  cow.  I  give  her  about  a  panful 
twice  a  day  —  when  I  don't  forget  it." 

Somehow,  Mrs.  Brown  didn't  seem  so  hard 
when  he  met  her  again  at  supper.  The  line  of 
her  mouth  was  softer.  In  his  room  he  found 
many  little  touches  of  her  motherly  hand  —  a 
clean,  sweet  bed,  and  little  hand-made  things  upon 
the  wall,  that  made  him  think  of  his  own  mother, 
who  had  been  dead  since  his  sixteenth  year.  He 
had  never  had  such  a  room  as  this.  It  appeared 
to  him  as  something  very  fine.  Its  frigid  atmos 
phere  and  lack  of  grace  and  charm  did  not  appear 
to  his  eyes.  It  was  nothing  short  of  princely 
after  his  cellar. 

His  knowledge  of  the  inner  life  of  the  common 
Western  homes  made  him  feel  that  this  rigid  cold 
ness  between  the  Judge  and  his  wife  was  only 
their  way.  The  touch  of  the  Judge's  hand  on  her 
shoulder  meant  more  than  a  thousand  worn 
phrases  spoken  every  day.  Under  that  silence 
and  reserve  there  was  a  deep  of  tenderness  and 
wistful  longing  which  they  could  not  utter, 
and  dared  not  acknowledge,  even  to  themselves. 
Their  lonely  house  had  grown  intolerable,  and 
Bradley  came  into  it  bringing  youth  and  sunlight. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  Ill 


X. 


A    COUNTRY    POLLING    PLACE. 

THE  suffering  of  the  county  papers  was  acute. 
They  had  supported  the  "incumbents"  for  so 
long,  and  had  derived  a  reciprocal  support  so  long, 
that  they  could  not  bring  themselves  to  a  decision. 
The  Democratic  paper,  the  Call,  was  too  feeble  to 
be  anything  distinctive  at  this  stage  of  its  career 
Chard  Foster  had  not  yet  assumed  control  of  it. 
It  lent  a  half-hearted  support  to  the  Independent 
movement,  and  justified  its  action  on  the  ground 
that  it  was  really  a  Democratic  movement  leading 
toward  reform,  and  it  assumed  to  be  the  only  ' 
paper  advocating  reform.  The  other  paper,  une 
quivocally  Republican,  supported  the  regular  ticket 
with  that  single-heartedness  of  enmity,  born  of 
bribery,  or  that  ignorance  which  shuts  out  any 
admission  that  the  other  side  has  a  case. 

The  Oak  Grove  schoolhouse  was  the  real  storm- 


112  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

centre  of  the  election,  and  there  was  a  great 
crowd  there  all  day.  It  was  a  cold,  raw  day. 
The  men  and  boys  all  came  in  their  overcoats  and 
stood  about  on  the  leeward  side  of  the  school- 
house —  where  a  pale  sunlight  fell  —  and  scuffled, 
and  told  stories,  and  bet  cookies  and  apples  on 
the  election. 

Some  of  the  boys  made  up  fires  out  in  the 
woods  near  by,  to  which  they  ran  whooping  when 
ever  the  cold  became  intolerable.  They  crouched 
around  the  flames  with  a  weird  return  of  ances 
tral  barbarism  and  laughed  when  the  smoke  puffed 
out  into  their  faces.  They  made  occasional  for 
ages  in  company  with  boys  who  lived  near,  after 
eggs,  and  apples,  and  popcorn,  which  they  placed 
before  the  fire  and  ate  spiced  with  ashes. 

Horsemen  galloped  up  at  intervals,  bringing 
encouraging  news  of  other  voting  places.  Teams 
clattered  up  filled  with  roughly-dressed  farmers, 
who  greeted  the  other  voters  with  loud  and  hearty 
shouts.  They  tumbled  out  of  the  wagons,  voted 
riotously,  and  then  clattered  back  into  the  corn 
fields  to  their  work,  with  wild  hurrahs  for  the 
granger  ticket. 

The  schoolhouse  itself  roared  with  laughter  and 
excited  talk,  and  the  big  stove  in  the  centre 
devoured  its  huge  chunks  of  wood,  making  the 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  113 

beat  oppressive  near  it.  No  presidential  election 
had  ever  brought  out  such  throngs  of  voters,  or 
produced  such  interested  discussion. 

Bradley  had  been  made  clerk.  His  capital 
handwriting  and  knowledge  of  book-keeping 
made  him  a  valuable  man  for  that  work.  He  sat 
behind  his  desk  with  the  books  before  him,  and 
impassively  performed  his  duties,  but  it  was  his 
first  public  appointment,  and  he  was  really  deeply 
gratified.  He  felt  paid  for  all  his  year's  hard 
study. 

About  two  o'clock,  when  the  voters  were  thick 
est  at  the  polls,  a  man  galloped  up  with  an  excited 
air,  and  reining  in  his  foaming  horse,  yelled : 

"  Deering  has  withdrawn  in  favor  of  Russell !  " 
The  crowd  swarmed  out. 

"  What's  the  matter  ?  " 

"  Who  spoke  ?  " 

"Deering  has  withdrawn  in  favor  of  Russell. 
Cast  your  votes  for  Russell,"  repeated  the  man, 
and  plunged  off  up  the  road. 

The  farmers  looked  at  each  other.  "  What  the 
hell's  all  this  ?  "  said  Smith. 

"  Who  was  it  ?  " 

"  I  don't  know." 

"  He's  a  liar,  whoever  he  is,"  said  Councill. 
" Where' ve  I  seen  him  before?" 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 


"  I  know  —  it's  Deering's  hired  man." 

"  You  don't  say  so  !  "  This  seemed  like  the 
truth. 

"  I  know  who  it  is  —  it's  Sam  Harding," 
shouted  Milton.  "  But  that  ain't  Deering's  horse. 
It's  a  Republican  trick.  Jump  y'r  horse  there, 
Councill."  He  was  carried  out  of  himself  by  his 
excitement  and  anger.  The  men  leaped  upon 
their  horses. 

"  Some  o'  you  fellers  take  his  back  trail," 
shouted  Councill.  "  He'll  come  from  Shell-rock 
and  Hell's  Corner." 

The  men  saw  the  whole  trick.  This  man  had 
been  sent  out  to  the  most  populous  of  the  county 
voting  places  to  spread  a  lying  repoit,  trusting  to 
the  surprise  of  the  announcement  to  carry  a  few 
indecisive  votes  for  Russell. 

Other  men  leaped  their  horses  and  rode  off  on 
Harding's  back  trail,  while  Councill,  Milton,  and 
old  man  Bacon  rode  away  after  him.  Bacon 
growled  as  he  rode  : 

"  I'm  agin  you  fellers,  but  by  God  !  I  b'lieve  in 
a  square  game.  If  I  kin  git  my  paw  on  that 
houn'  "  — 

They  rode  furiously  in  the  hope  of  overtaking 
him  before  he  reached  the  next  polling-place. 
Milton  was  in  the  lead  on  his  gray  colt,  a  magnifi- 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  115 

cent  creature.  He  was  light  and  a  fine  rider,  and 
forged  ahead  of  the  elder  men.  But  the  "spy" 
was  also  riding  a  fine  horse,  and  was  riding  very 
fast. 

When  they  reached  the  next  polling-place  he 
was  just  passing  out  of  sight  beyond.  They 
dashed  up,  scattering  the  wondering  crowd. 

"It's  a  lie!  It's  a  trick!"  shouted  Milton. 
"Deering  wouldn't  withdraw.  Cast  every  vote 
for  Deering.  It's  all  done  to  fool  yeh  ! " 

The  others  came  thundering  up.  "  It's  a  lie !  " 
they  shouted. 

"Come  on!"  cried  Milton,  dropping  the  .rein 
on  Mark's  neck,  and  darting  away  on  the  trail  of 
the  false  courier. 

The  young  fellows  caught  the  excitement,  and 
every  one  who  had  a  horse  leaped  into  the  saddle 
and  clattered  after,  with  whoop  and  halloo,  as  if 
they  were  chasing  a  wolf. 

The  rider  ahead  suddenly  discovered  that  he 
was  being  followed,  and  he  urged  his  horse  to  a 
more  desperate  pace  along  the  lane  which  skirted 
the  woods'  edge  for  a  mile,  and  then  turned 
sharply  and  led  across  the  river. 

Along  the  lane  is  the  chase  led.  There  was 
something  in  the  grim  silence  with  which  Milton 
and  Bacon  rode  in  the  lead  that  startled  the  spy's 


116  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

guilty  heart.  He  pushed  his  horse  unmercifully, 
hoping  to  discourage  his  pursuers. 

Milton's  blood  was  up  now,  and  bringing  the 
flat  of  his  hand  down  on  the  proud  neck  of  his 
colt  —  the  first  blow  he  ever  struck  him,  he 
shouted  — 

"Get  out  o'  this,  Mark!" 

The  magnificent  animal  threw  out  his  chin,  his 
ears  laid  flat  back,  he  seemed  to  lower  and 
lengthen,  his  eyes  took  on  a  wild  glare.  The 
air  whizzed  by  Milton's  ears.  A  wild  exultation 
rose  in  his  heart.  All  the  stories  of  rides  and 
desperate  men  he  had  ever  read  came  back  in  a 
vague  mass  to  make  his  heart  thrill. 

Mark's  terrific  pace  steadily  ate  up  the  inter 
vening  distance,  and  Milton  turned  the  corner 
and  thundered  down  the  decline  at  the  very  heels 
of  the  fugitive. 

"Hey!  Hold  on  there!"  Milton  shouted,  as 
he  drew  alongside  and  passed  the  fellow.  "  Hold 
on  there !  " 

"Git  out  o'  my  way ! "  was  the  savage  answer. 

"Stop  right  here!"  commanded  Milton,  rein 
ing  Mark  in  the  way  of  the  other  horse. 

The  fellow  struck  Mark.  "Git  out  o'  my 
way  !  "  he  yelled. 

Milton  seized  the  bit  of   the  other  horse   and 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  117 

held  it.     The  fellow  raised  his    arm    and    struck 
him  twice  before  Bacon  came  thundering  up. 

"  H'yare  !     Damn  yeh  —  none  o'  that !  " 

He  leaped  from  his  horse,  and  running  up,  tore 
the  rider  from  his  saddle  in  one  swift  effort. 
The  fellow  struggled  fiercely. 

"Let  go  o'  me,  'r  I'll  kill  yeh  !  " 

Bacon  growled  something  inarticulate  as  he 
cuffed  the  man  from  side  to  side,  shook  him  like 
a  rag,  and  threw  him  to  the  ground.  He  lay 
there  dazed  and  scared,  while  Bacon  caught  his 
horse  and  tied  it  to  a  tree. 

He  came  back  to  the  fellow  as  he  was  ris 
ing,  and  again  laid  his  bear-like  clutch  upon 
him. 

"Who  paid  you  to  do  this?"  he  demanded,  as 
Councill  and  the  others  came  straggling  up,  their 
horses  panting  with  fatigue. 

The  fellow  struck  him  in  the  face.  The  old 
man  lifted  him  in  the  air  and  dashed  him  to  the 
ground  with  a  snarling  cry.  His  gesture  was  like 
that  of  one  who  slams  a  biting  cat  upon  the  floor. 
The  man  did  not  rise. 

"You've  killed  him!"  cried  Milton. 

"Damn  'im  —  I  don't  care!" 
•  The  man  was  about  thirty-five  years  of  age,  a 
slender,  thin-faced  man  with  tobacco-stained  whis- 


118  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

kers.  The  fellows  knew  him  for  a  sneaking  fel 
low,  but  they  plead  for  him. 

"Don't  hit  'im  agin,  Bacon.    He's  got  enough." 

The  fellow  sat  up  and  looked  around.  The 
blood  was  streaming  from  his  nose  and  from  a 
wound  in  his  head.  He  had  a  savage  and  hunted 
look.  He  was  unsubdued,  but  was  too  much 
dazed  to  be  able  to  do  anything  more  than  swear 
at  them  all. 

"What  a'  yuh  chasen'  me  fur,  y'  damn  cow 
ards  ?  Six  on  one  ! " 

"What're  you  do-un  ridin'  across  the  country 
like  this  fur  ? " 

"  None  o'  your  business,  you  low-lived  "  — 

Bacon  brought  the  doubled  leading-strap  which 
he  held  in  his  hand  down  over  the  fellow's 
shoulders  with  a  sounding  slap. 

"What  you  need  is  a  sound  tannun,"  he  said. 
He  plied  the  strap  in  perfect  silence  upon  the 
writhing  man,  who  swore  and  yelled,  but  dared 
not  rise. 

"  Give  him  enough  of  it ! "  yelled  the  crowd. 

"Give  the  fool  enough  !  " 

Bacon  worked  away  with  a  curious  air  of  taking 
a  job.  The  strap  fell  across  the  man's  upheld 
hands  and  over  his  shoulders,  penetrating  even 
the  thick  coat  he  wore  —  but  it  was  not  the  blows 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  119 

that  quelled  him,  it  was  the  look  in  Bacon's  eyes. 
He  saw  that  the  old  man  would  stand  there  till 
sunset  and  ply  that  strap. 

"Hold  on  !     Dam  yeh  —  y'  want  'o  kill  me?" 

"Got  'nough?" 

"Yes,  yes  !     My  God,  yes  !  " 

"Climb  onto  that  horse  there." 

He  climbed  upon  his  horse,  and  with  Bacon 
leading  it,  rode  back  along  the  road  he  had  come, 
covered  with  blood. 

"  Now  I  want  you  to  say  with  y'r  own  tongue 
ye  lied,"  Bacon  said,  as  they  came  to  the  last  poll 
ing-place  he  had  passed. 

The    crowd    came   rushing   out    with    excited 
questions. 

"  What  y'  got  there,  Bacon  ? " 

"A  liar.  Come,  what  ye  goun't'  say?"  he 
asked  the  captive. 

"I  lied — Deering  aint  withdrawn." 

They  rode  on,  Councill  and  Milton  following 
Bacon  and  his  prisoner.  At  the  Oak  Grove 
schoolhouse  a  great  crowd  had  gathered,  and  they 
came  ou?  in  a  swarm  as  the  cavalcade  rode  up. 
Bradley  left  his  book  and  came  out  to  see  the  poor 
prisoner,  who  reeled  in  his  saddle,  covered  with 
blood  and  dirt. 

They  rode  on  to  the  next  polling-place,  relent- 
9 


120  ^   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

lessly  forcing  the  man  to  undo  as  much  of  his 
villainy  as  possible.  Milton  remained  with  Brad 
ley.  "That  shows  how  desperate  they  are,"  he 
said  as  they  went  back  into  the  schoolhouse. 
"They  see  we  mean  business  this  time." 

All  was  quiet,  even  gloomy,  when  Bradley  and 
Milton  reached  Rock  River.  The  streets  were 
deserted,  and  only  an  occasional  opening  door  at 
some  favorite  haunt,  like  the  drug-store  or  Robie's 
grocery,  showed  that  a  living  soul  was  interested 
in  the  outcome  of  the  election.  There  were  no 
bonfires,  no  marching  of  boys  through  the  street 
with  tin  pans  and  horns. 

Some  reckless  fellows  tried  it  out  of  devilment, 
but  were  promptly  put  down  by  the  strong  hand  of 
the  city  marshal,  whose  sympathies  were  with  the 
broken  "ring."  It  had  been  evident  at  an  early 
hour  of  the  day  that  the  town  of  Rock  River  itself 
was  divided.  Amos  Ridings  and  Robie  had  car 
ried  a  strong  following  over  into  the  camp  of  the 
farmers.  A  general  feeling  had  developed  which 
demanded  a  change. 

Milton  was  wild  with  excitement.  He  realized 
more  of  the  significance  of  the  victory  than  Brad 
ley.  He  had  been  in  politics  longer.  For  the 
first  time  in  the  history  of  the  county,  the  farmers 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  121 

had  asserted  themselves.  For  the  first  time  in 
the  history  of  the  farmers  of  Iowa,  had  they  felt 
the  power  of  their  own  mass.  . 

For  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  American 
farmer  there  had  come  a  feeling  of  solidarity. 
They  perceived,  for  a  moment  at  least,  their  com 
munity  of  interests  and  their  power  to  preserve 
themselves  against  the  combined  forces  of  the 
political  pensioners  of  the  small  towns.  They 
made  the  mistake  of  supposing  the  interests  of 
the  merchant,  artisan,  and  mechanic  were  also 
inimicable. 

They  saw  the  smaller  circle  first.  They  had 
not  yet  risen  to  the  perception  of  the  solidarity  of 
all  productive  interests.  That  was  sure  to  follow. 


122  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 


XL 

STUDYING  WITH  THE  JUDGE. 

AFTER  this  campaign  Bradley  went  back  to 
his  studies  at  the  seminary  and  to  his  work  in 
Brown's  office.  Milton  did  not  go  back.  Deer- 
ing  made  him  his  assistant  in  the  treasurer's 
office,  and  he  confided  to  Bradley  his  approach 
ing  marriage  with  Eileen. 

In  talking  about  Milton's  affairs  to  Bradley, 
Mr.  Jennings  said  sadly :  "  Well,  that  leaves  me 
alone.  He'll  never  come  back  to  the  farm. 
When  he  was  at  school  I  didn't  miss  him  so 
much,  because  he  was  always  coming  back  on  a 
Saturday,  but  now  —  well,  it's  no  use  making  a 
fuss  over  it,  I  s'pose,  but  it's  going  to  be  lone 
some  work  for  us  out  there." 

"Mebbe  he'll  come  back  after  his  term  of 
office  is  up." 

Mr.  Jennings  shook  his  head.      "  No,  town  life 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  123 

and  office'll  spoil  'im  —  and  then  he'll  get  mar 
ried.  You'll  never  go  back  on  the  farm.  Nobody 
ever  does  that  gets  away  from  it  and  learns  how 
to  get  a  livin'  anywhere  else." 

This  melancholy  sat  strangely  upon  Mr.  Jen 
nings,  who  usually  took  things  as  they  came  with 
smiling  resignation.  It  affected  Bradley  deeply 
to  see  him  so  gloomy. 

Bradley  found  a  quiet  and  comfortable  home 
with  Judge  Brown  and  his  odd  old  wife,  who  man 
ifested  her  growing  regard  for  him  by  little 
touches  of  adornment  in  his  room,  and  by  infre 
quent  confidences.  As  for  the  Judge,  he  took  an 
immense  delight  in  the  young  fellow,  he  made 
such  a  capital  listener.  Between  Bradley  and  the 
grocery  he  really  found  opportunity  to  tell  all  his 
old  stories  and  philosophize  upon  every  conceiv 
able  subject.  He  talked  a  deal  of  politics, 
quoting  Jefferson  and  Jackson.  He  criticised 
members  of  Congress,  and  told  what  he  would 
have  done  in  their  places.  He  criticised,  also, 
the  grange  movement,  from  what  he  considered 
to  be  a  lofty  plane. 

"They  profess  to  have  for  a  motto  'equal 
rights  to  all  and  special  privileges  to  none,'  and 
then  they  go  off  into  class  legislation.  It's  easy 
to  talk  that  principle,  but  it  means  business  when 


124  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

you  stand  by  it.  I  haint  got  the  sand  to  stand 
by  that  principle  myself.  It  goes  too  deep  for 
me,  but  it's  something  you  young  politicians 
ought  to  study  on.  One  o'  these  days  that  prin 
ciple  will  get  life  into  it,  and  when  it  does  things 
will  tumble.  The  Democratic  party  used  to  be 
a  party  that  meant  that,  and  if  it  ever  succeeds 
again  it  must  head  that  way.  That's  the  reason 
I  want  to  get  you  young  fellows  into  it." 

These  talks  didn't  mean  as  much  to  Bradley 
as  they  should  have  done.  He  was  usually  at 
work  at  something  and  only  half  listened  while 
the  Judge  wandered  on,  his  heels  in  the  air, 
his  cheek  full  of  tobacco.  Old  Colonel  Peavy 
dropped  in  occasionally,  and  Dr.  Carver,  and  then 
the  air  was  full  of  good,  old-time  Democratic 
phrases.  At  such  times  the  Judge  even  went  so 
far  as  to  quote  Calhoun. 

"As  a  matter  of  fact,  Calhoun  was  on  the 
right  track.  If  he  hadn't  got  his  States'  Rights 
doctrine  mixed  up  with  slavery,  he'd  'a'  been  all 
right.  What  he  really  stood  for  was  local  govern 
ment  as  opposed  to  centralized  government. 
We're  just  comin'  around  back  to  a  part  of  Cal- 
houn's  position." 

This  statement  of  the  Judge  stuck  in  Bradley's 
mind;  months  afterward  it  kept  coming  up  and 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 


becoming  more  significant  each  time  that  he 
talked  upon  it. 

He  thought  less  often  of  Miss  Wilbur  now, 
and  he  could  hear  her  name  mentioned  without 
flushing.  She  had  become  a  vaguer  but  no  less 
massive  power  in  his  life.  That  beautiful  place 
in  his  soul  where  she  was  he  had  a  strange  rever 
ence  for.  He  loved  to  have  it  there.  It  was  an 
inspiration  to  him,  and  yet  he  did  not  distinctly 
look  forward  to  ever  seeing  her,  much  less  to 
meeting  her. 

Indefinite  as  this  feeling  was,  it  saved  him 
from  the  mistake  of  marrying  Nettie.  Poor  girl ! 
She  was  in  the  grasp  of  her  first  great  passion, 
and  was  as  helpless  as  a  broken-winged  bird  in 
the  current  of  a  river.  She  was  feverishly  happy 
and  unaccountably  sad  by  turns.  The  commands 
of  her  father  not  to  see  Bradley  only  roused  her 
antagonism,  and  her  mother's  timid  entreaties 
made  no  impression  upon  her.  Not  even  Brad- 
ley's  unresponsiveness  seemed  to  have  a  decided 
discouraging  effect. 

Her  classmates  laughed  at  her,  as  they  did  at 
three  or  four  other  pairs  in  the  school  who  pro 
claimed  their  devouring  love  for  each  other  by 
walking  to  and  from  the  chapel  with  locked  arms, 
or  who  sat  side  by  side  in  their  classes  with 


126  A  SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

clasped  hands,  indifferent  to  any  rude  jest,  repri 
mand  from  the  teacher,  or  slyly-flung  eraser. 
The  principal  gave  it  up  in  despair,  calling  it  a 
"sort  of  measles  which  they'll  outgrow." 

It  was  really  pitiful  to  the  comprehending 
observer.  There  was  so  much  that  was  pain 
mixed  with  this  pleasure.  There  were  so  many 
keen  and  benumbing  disappointments,  like  that 
of  waiting  about  the  door  of  the  office  for  Bradley 
to  come  down,  and  then  to  see  him  appear  in 
company  with  some  client  of  Judge  Brown.  Not 
that  the  client  made  so  much  difference,  but  the 
cold  glance  of  Bradley's  eyes  did.  At  such  times 
she  turned  away  with  quivering  lip  and  choking 
throat. 

She  had  lost  much  of  her  pertness  and  bright 
ness.  She  talked  very  little  at  home,  and  it  was 
only  when  with  Bradley  that  she  seemed  at  all 
like  her  old  bird-like  self.  Then  she  chattered 
away  in  a  wild  delight,  if  he  happened  to  be  in 
a  responsive  mood,  or  feverishly  and  with  a 
forced  quality  of  gayety  if  he  were  cold  and 
unresponsive. 

Bradley  knew  he  ought  to  decide  one  way  or 
the  other,  and  often  he  promised  himself  that  he 
would  refuse  to  walk  or  ride  with  her,  but  the 
next  time  she  came  he  weakly  relented  at  sight  of 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  127 

her  eager  face.  It  took  so  little  to  make  her 
happy,  that  the  temptation  was  very  great  to 
yield,  and  so  their  lives  went  along.  He  took  her 
to  the  parties  and  sleigh-rides  with  the  young 
people,  but  on  his  return  he  refused  to  enter  the 
house.  He  met  her  at  the  gate,  and  left  her  there 
upon  his  return. 

The  colonel  had  met  him  shortly  after  the  elec 
tion,  and  had  threatened  to  whip  him  for  his 
charges  against  him  as  an  office-holder.  He  con 
cluded  not  to  try  it,  however,  and  contented  him 
self  by  saying,  "Don't  you  never  darken  my  door 
again,  young  man." 

But  in  general  Bradley's  life  moved  on  unevent 
fully.  He  applied  himself  studiously  to  his  work 
in  the  office.  He  was  getting  hold  of  some 
common  law,  and  a  great  deal  of  common  sense, 
for  the  Judge  was  strong  on  both  these  points. 

"Young  man,"  said  the  Judge  one  day,  after 
Bradley  had  returned  from  a  sleigh-ride  with  Net 
tie,  "  I  see  that  the  woman-question  is  before  you. 
Now  don't  make  a  mistake.  Be  sure  you  are 
right.  In  nine  cases  out  of  ten,  back  out  and 
you'll  be  right." 

Bradley  remained  silent  over  by  the  rickety  red- 
hot  stove,  warming  his  stiffened  fingers.  The 
Judge  went  on  in  a  speculative  way: 


128  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

"I  believe  I  notice  a  tendency  in  the  times  that 
makes  it  harder  for  a  married  man  to  succeed  than 
it  used  to  be.  I  think,  on  the  whole,  my  advice 
would  be  to  keep  out  of  it  altogether.  More  men 
fail  on  that  account,  I  observe,  than  upon  any 
other.  You  see  it's  so  infernally  hard  to  tell  what 
kind  of  a  woman  your  girl  is  going  to  turn  out." 

"You  needn't  worry  about  me,"  said  Bradley  a 
little  sullenly. 

"That's  what  Mrs.  Brown  said.  I  just  thought 
I'd  say  a  word  or  two,  anyway.  If  I've  gone  too 
far,  you  may  kick  my  dog  over  there." 

Bradley  looked  at  the  sleeping  dog,  and  back  at 
the  meditative  Judge,  and  smiled.  He  sat  down 
at  his  work  and  said  no  more  upon  the  subject. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  129 


XII. 

THE  JUDGE  ADVISES  BRADLEY. 

IT  was  at  the  Judge's  advice  that  he  decided  to 
take  a  year  at  the  law-school  at  Iowa  City.  He 
had  been  in  the  office  over  a  year  and  a  half,  and 
though  he  had  not  been  converted  to  Democracy, 
the  Judge  was  still  hopeful. 

"  Oh,  you'll  have  to  come  into  the  Democratic 
camp,"  he  often  said.  "You  see,  it's  like  this: 
the  Republicans  are  so  damn  proud  of  their  record, 
they're  going  to  ossify,  with  their  faces  turned 
backward.  They  have  a  past,  but  no  future. 
Now  the  Democratic  party  has  no  past  that  it 
cares  particularly  to  look  back  at,  and  so  it's  got 
to  look  into  the  future.  You  progressive  young 
fellows  can't  afford  to  stand  in  a  party  where 
everything  is  all  done,  because  that  leaves  nothing 
for  you  to  do  but  to  admire  some  dead  man. 
You'll  be  forced  into  the  party  of  ideas,  sure.  I 


130  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

aint  disposed  to  hurry  you,  you'll  come  out  all 
right  when  the  time  comes." 

Bradley  never  argued  with  him.  He  had  simply 
shut  his  lips  and  his  mind  to  it  all.  Democracy 
had  lost  some  of  its  evil  associations  in  his  mind, 
however,  and  Free  Trade  and  Secession  no  longer 
meant  practically  the  same  thing,  as  it  used  to 
do. 

"Now  people  are  damn  fools  —  excepting  you 
an'  me,  of  course,"  yawned  the  Judge,  one  day  in 
midsummer.  "What  you  want  to  do  is  to  take  a 
couple  of  years  at  Iowa  City  and  then  come  back 
here  and  jump  right  into  the  political  arena  and 
toot  your  horn.  They'll  elect  you  twice  as  quick 
if  you  come  back  here  with  a  high  collar  and  a 
plug-hat,  even  these  grangers.  They  distrust  a 
man  in  'hodden  gray'  —  no  sort  of  doubt  of  it. 
Now  you  take  my  advice.  People  like  to  be 
pollygoggled  by  a  sleek  suit  of  clothes.  And 
then,  there  is  nothing  that  impresses  people  with 
a  man's  immense  accumulation  of  learning  and 
dignity  like  a  judicious  spell  of  absence." 

It  was  very  warm,  and  they  both  sat  with  coats 
and  vests  laid  aside.  The  fat  old  bull-dog  was 
panting  convulsively  from  the  exertion  of  having 
just  climbed  the  stairs.  The  Judge  went  on,  after 
looking  affectionately  at  the  dog : 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  131 

"Ah,  we're  a  gittin'  old  together,  Bull  an'  me. 
We  like  the  shady  side  of  the  street.  Now  you 
could  make  a  good  run  in  the  county  to-day,  as 
you  are,  but  your  election  would  be  doubtful,  and 
we  can't  afford  to  take  any  chances.  There  are  a 
lot  o'  fellers  who'd  say  you  hadn't  had  experience 
enough  —  too  young,  an'  all  that  kind  o'  thing. 
We'll  suppose  you  could  be  elected  auditor.  It 
wouldn't  pay.  It  would  only  stand  in  the  way  of 
bigger  things.  Now  you  take  my  advice." 

"  I'd  like  to,  but  I  can't  afford  it,  Judge." 

"  How  much  you  got  on  hand  ?  " 

"  Oh,  couple  of  hundred  dollars  or  so." 

The  Judge  ruminated  a  bit,  scratching  his  chin. 
"Well,  now,  I'll  tell  yeh,  Mrs.  Brown  and  I  had 
a  little  talk  about  the  matter  last  night,  and  she 
thinks  I  ought  to  lend  you  the  money,  and  —  she 
thinks  you  ought  to  take  it.  So  pack  up  y'r  duds 
in  September  and  start  in." 

Bradley's  first  impulse,  of  course,  was  to  refuse, 
because  he  felt  he  had  no  claim  upon  the  Judge's 
charity.  It  took  hold  of  his  imagination,  however, 
and  he  talked  it  all  over  thoroughly  during  the 
intervening  weeks,  and  the  Judge  put  it  this  way: 

"Now,  there's  no  charity  about  this  thing  —  I 
simply  expect  to  get  three  hundred  per  cent,  on 
my  money,  so  you  go  right  along  and  when  you 


132  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

come  back  we'll  have  a  new  shingle  painted — • 
'Brown  &  Talcott.'  We  aint  anxious  to  lose  yeh. 
As  a  matter  of  fact,  Mrs.  Brown  and  I'll  be  pretty 
lonesome  for  the  first  few  weeks  after  you  go 
away  —  and  what  I'll  do  about  that  cussed  cow 
and  kindling-wood  I  really  don't  know.  Mrs. 
Brown  suggested  we'd  better  take  in  another 
homeless  boy,  and  I  guess  that's  what  we'll  do." 

A  couple  of  nights  later,  while  Bradley  was  sit 
ting  before  his  trunk,  which  he  had  begun  to  pack 
like  the  inexperienced  traveller  he  was,  several 
days  in  advance,  Mrs.  Brown  came  to  the  stairway 
to  tell  him  Nettie  was  below  and  wanted  to  see 
him. 

The  poor  girl  had  just  heard  that  he  was  going 
away  and  she  met  him  with  a  white,  scared  face. 
He  sat  down  without  speaking,  for  he  had  no 
defence,  except  silence,  for  things  of  that  nature. 
The  girl's  fury  of  grief  appalled  him.  She  came 
over  and  flung  herself  sobbing  upon  his  lap,  her 
arms  about  his  neck. 

"  Oh,  Brad  !    Is  it  true  ?    Are  you  going  away  ? " 

"I  expect  to,"  he  replied  coldly. 

"You  mustn't!  You  sha'n't!  I  won't  let 
you ! "  she  cried,  tightening  her  arms  about  him, 
as  if  that  would  detain  him.  From  that  on,  there 
was  nothing  but  sobs  on  her  side,  and  expla- 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  133 

nations  on  his  —  explanations  to  which  her  love, 
direct  and  selfish,  would  not  listen  for  a  moment. 
The  unreserve  and  unreason  of  her  passion  at  last 
disgusted  him.  His  tone  grew  sharper. 

"I  can't  stay  here,"  he  said.  "You've  no  busi 
ness  to  ask  me  to.  I  can't  always  be  a  lawyer's 
hack.  I  want  to  study  and  go  higher.  I've  got 
to  leave  this  town,  if  I  ever  amount  to  anything  in 
the  world." 

"Then  take  me  with  you  !  "  she  cried. 

"  I  can't  do  that !  I  can't  any  more'n  make  a 
livin'  for  myself.  Besides,  I've  got  to  study." 

"I'll  make  father  give  you  some  money,"  she 
said. 

He  closed  his  lips  sternly,  and  said  nothing  fur 
ther.  Her  agony  wore  itself  out  after  a  time,  and 
she  was  content  to  sit  up  and  look  at  him  and 
listen  to  him  at  last  while  he  explained.  And  her 
suppressed  sobs  and  the  tears  that  stood  in  her 
big  childish  eyes  moved  him  more  than  her  unre 
strained  sorrow.  It  was  thus  she  conquered  him. 

He  promised  her  he  would  come  home  often, 
and  he  promised  to  write  every  day,  and  by  impli 
cation,  though  not  in  words,  he  promised  to  marry 
her  —  that  is  to  say,  he  acquiesced  in  her  plans 
for  housekeeping  when  he  returned  and  was  estab 
lished  in  the  office.  He  ended  it  all  by  walking 


134  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

home  with  her  and  promising  to  see  her  every  day 
before  he  went,  and  as  he  kissed  her  good-night 
at  the  gate,  she  was  smiling  again  and  quite 
happy,  although  a  little  catching  of  the  breath 
(even  in  her  laughter)  showed  that  she  was  not 
yet  out  of  the  ground-swell  of  her  emotion. 

Mrs.  Brown  was  waiting  for  him  when  he 
returned,  and  as  he  sat  down  in  the  sitting-room, 
where  she  was  busy  at  her  sewing,  she  looked  at 
him  in  her  slow  way,  and  at  last  arose  and  came 
over  near  his  chair. 

"Have  you  promised  her  anything,  Bradley?" 
she  asked,  laying  her  thimbled  hand  upon  his 
shoulder,  as  his  own  mother  might  have  done. 
Bradley  lifted  his  gloomy  eyes  and  colored  a  little. 

"I  don't  know  what  I've  said,"  he  answered, 
from  the  depth  of  his  swift  reaction.  "  More'n  I 
had  any  business  to  say,  probably." 

"I  thought  likely.  You  can't  afford  to  marry 
a  girl  out  of  pity  for  her,  Bradley  —  it  won't  do. 
I've  seen  how  things  stood  for  some  time,  but  I 
thought  I  wouldn't  say  anything."  She  paused 
and  considered  a  moment,  standing  there  by  his 
side.  "It's  a  good  thing  for  both  of  you  that 
you're  going  away.  You  hadn't  ought  to  have 
let  it  go  on  so  long." 

"I   couldn't   help    it,"    he    replied    with    more 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  135 

sharpness  in  his  voice  than  he  had  ever  used  in 
speaking  to  her. 

Her  hand  dropped  from  his  shoulder.  "  No,  I 
don't  s'pose  you  could.  It  aint  natural  for  young 
people  to  stop  an'  think  about  these  things.  I 
don't  suppose  you  knew  y'rself  just  where  it  was 
all  leading  to.  Well,  now,  don't  worry,  and  don't 
let  it  interfere  with  your  plans.  She'll  outgrow 
it.  Girls  often  go  through  two  or  three  such 
attacks.  Just  go  on  with  your  studies,  and  when 
you  come  back,  if  you  find  her  unmarried,  why, 
then  decide  what  to  do." 

Her  touch  of  cynicism  was  accounted  for,  per 
haps,  by  the  fact  that  she  had  never  had  a 
daughter. 


10 


136  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 


XIII. 
BRADLEY    SEES    IDA    AGAIN. 

BRADLEY  felt  that  the  world  was  widening  for 
him,  as  he  took  the  train  for  Iowa  City  a  few 
days  later.  He  was  now  very  nearly  thirty  years 
of  age,  and  was  maturing  more  rapidly  than  his 
friends  and  neighbors  knew,  for  the  processes  of 
his  mind,  like  those  of  an  intricate  coil  of  machin 
ery,  were  hidden  deep  away  from  the  casual 
acquaintance. 

He  had  secured,  in  the  two  years  at  the  semi 
nary,  a  fairly  good  groundwork  of  the  common 
English  branches,  and  his  occasional  reading,  and 
especially  his  attendance  upon  law-suits,  had 
given  him  a  really  creditable  understanding  of 
common  law.  The  Judge  always  insisted  that 
law  was  simple,  but  it  wasn't  as  profitable  as  — 
chicanery. 

"Any  man,  from  his  fund  of  common   sense, 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  137 

can  settle  nine  tenths  of  all  law-suits,  but  that 
aint  what  we're  here  for.  A  successful  lawyer  is 
the  fellow  who  tangles  things  up  and  keeps  com 
mon  law  and  common  sense  subordinated  to  chi 
canery  and  precedent.  Damn  precedent,  anyway. 
It  means  referring  to  a  past  that  didn't  know,  and 
didn't  want  to  know,  what  justice  was." 

In  the  atmosphere  of  lectures  like  these,  Brad 
ley  had  unconsciously  absorbed  a  great  deal  of 
radical  thought  about  law-codes,  and  now  went 
about  the  study  of  the  history  of  enactments  and 
change  of  statutes  without  any  servile  awe  of  the 
past.  The  Judge's  irreverence  had  its  uses,  for  it 
put  a  law  on  its  merits  before  the  young  student. 

He  found  the  law-school  a  very  congenial  place 
to  study.  He  passed  the  examinations  quite 
decently. 

His  life  there  was  quiet  and  studious,  for  he 
felt  that  he  had  less  time  than  the  younger  men. 
His  age  seemed  excessive  to  him,  by  contrast. 
He  was  very  generally  respected  as  a  quiet, 
decent  fellow,  who  might  be  a  fine  consulting 
lawyer,  but  not  a  good  man  in  the  courts.  They 
changed  this  opinion  very  suddenly  upon  hearing 
him  present  his  first  plea. 

His  life  consisted  for  the  most  part  of  passing 
to  and  fro  from  his  boarding-place  to  his  recitation- 


138  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

room,  or  to  long  hours  of  digging  in  the  library. 
He  saw  from  time  to  time  notices  of  Miss  Wil 
bur's  lectures  in  the  interests  of  the  grange  and 
upon  literary  topics.  He  determined  to  hear  her 
if  she  came  into  any  neighboring  city.  There  was 
no  one  to  spy  upon  him,  if  he  made  an  expedition 
of  that  sort. 

One  beautiful  winter  day  he  read  in  the  weekly 
paper  of  the  town  that  she  was  about  to  appear  at 
the  Congregational  church  in  a  lecture  entitled, 
"The  Real  Woman-question."  He  had  an  impulse 
to  sing,  which  he  wisely  repressed,  for  he  couldn't 
sing  —  that  is,  nothing  which  the  hearer  would 
recognize  as  singing.  The  Fates  seemed  working 
in  his  favor. 

He  had  preserved  a  marked  sweetness  and  pur 
ity  of  thought  through  all  his  hard  life  that  made 
him  a  good  type  of  man.  His  clear,  steady  eyes 
never  gave  offence  to  any  woman,  for  nothing  but 
sympathy  and  admiration  ever  looked  out  of  them. 
The  very  thought  that  she  was  coming  so  near 
brought  a  curious  numbness  into  his  muscles  and 
a  tremor  into  his  hands.  He  looked  forward  now 
to  the  evening  of  the  lecture  with  the  keenest 
interest  he  had  ever  felt. 

The  dazzling  winter  day  seemed  more  radiant 
than  ever  before,  when  he  heard  some  ladies  in 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  139 

the  post-office  say  Ida  was  in  town.  The  blue 
shadows  lay  on  the  new-fallen  snow  vivid  as  steel. 
The  warm  sun  showered  down  through  the  clear 
air  a  peculiar  warmth  that  made  the  eaves  begin 
to  drop  in  the  early  morning.  Sleighs  were  mov 
ing  to  and  fro  in  the  streets,  and  bright  bits  of 
color  on  the  girls'  hoods  and  in  the  broad  knit 
scarfs  which  the  young  men  wore,  formed  pleas 
ing  reliefs  from  the  dazzling  blue  and  white. 
Bells  filled  the  air  with  jocund  music. 

Bradley  walked  straight  away  into  the  country. 
He  wanted  to  be  alone.  It  seemed  so  strange 
and  sweet  to  be  thus  shaken  by  the  coming  of  a 
woman.  In  the  first  few  minutes  he  gave  himself 
up  to  the  thought  that  she  was  near  and  that  he 
was  going  to  hear  her  speak  again.  It  made  his 
hand  shake  and  his  heart  beat  quick. 

He  wondered  if  she  would  be  changed.  She 
would  be  older  a  little,  but  she  would  look  just 
the  same.  He  saw  her  stand  again  under  the 
waving  branches  of  the  oaks,  the  flickering  shadow 
on  her  brown  hair,  speaking  again  the  words 
which  had  become  the  measure  of  his  ambition, 
the  prophecy  of  a  social  condition  : 

"  I  want  to  have  everything  I  do  to  help  us  all 
on  toward  that  time  when  the  country  will  be 
filled  with  happy  young  people,  and  hale  and 


140  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

hearty  old  people,  when  the  moon  will  be  brighter, 
and  the  stars  thicker  in  the  skies." 

This  was  his  thought.  He  had  not  risen  yet  to 
the  conception  of  the  real  barrenness  and  squalor 
of  the  life  he  had  lived. 

His  studies  had  made  him  a  little  more  self- 
analytical,  but  there  were  inner  deeps  where  he 
did  not  penetrate  and  there  was  one  sacred  place 
which  he  dared  not  enter.  A  whirl  of  thought 
confused  him,  but  out  of  it  all  he  returned  con 
stantly  to  the  thought  that  he  should  hear  her 
speak  again. 

That  evening  he  dressed  himself  with  as  much 
care  as  if  he  were  to  call  upon  her  alone,  and  he 
dressed  very  well  now.  His  clothes  were  sub 
stantial  and  fitted  him  well.  His  year's  immunity 
from  hard  work  had  left  his  large  hands  supple 
and  delicate  of  touch,  and  his  face  had  attained 
refinement  and  mobility.  His  eyes  had  become 
more  introspective  and  had  lost  entirely  the 
ox-like  roll  of  the  country-born  man.  He  was  a 
handsome  and  dignified  young  man.  His  bearing 
on  the  street  was  noticeably  manly  and  unaffected. 

The  lecture  was  in  the  church  and  the  seats 
were  all  filled.  It  gratified  him,  at  the  same  time 
that  it  hopelessly  abased  him  to  observe  all  this 
evidence  of  her  power.  As  he  waited  for  her  to 


A   SPOIL  OF  OFFICE. 


appear  that  tremor  came  into  his  hands  again, 
and  that  breathlessness,  and  curiously  enough  he 
felt  that  horrible  familiar  sinking  of  the  heart  which 
he  always  felt  just  before  he  himself  rose  to  speak. 

Somebody  started  to  clap  hands,  and  the  rest 
joined  in,  as  two  or  three  ladies  entered  the  back 
part  of  the  church  and  passed  up  the  aisle.  He 
looked  up  as  they  went  by  him,  and  caught  a 
glimpse  of  a  stately  head  of  brown  hair,  modestly 
bent  in  acknowledgment  of  the  applause,  and  he 
caught  a  whiff  of  the  delicate  odor  of  violets.  His 
eyes  followed  the  strong,  firm  steps  of  the  young 
woman  who  walked  between  the  two  older  women. 
There  was  something  fine  and  dignified  in  her 
walk,  and  the  odor  of  her  dress  as  she  passed 
lingered  with  him,  but  he  did  not  feel  that  this 
was  the  same  woman,  till  she  turned  and  faced 
him  on  the  platform. 

He  sat  impassively,  but  his  pulse  leaped  when 
her  clear  brown  eyes  running  calmly  over  the 
audience  seemed  to  fall  upon  him.  She  was  the 
same  woman,  his  ideal  and  more.  She  was  fuller 
of  form  and  the  poise  of  her  head  was  more 
womanly,  but  she  was  the  same  spirit  that  had 
come  to  be  such  a  power  and  inspiration  in  his 
life. 

As  a  matter  of   fact  she  had  grown   also.     If 


142  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

she  had  not,  she  would  have  seemed  girlish  to  him 
now ;  growing  as  he  grew,  she  seemed  the  same 
distance  beyond  him.  Her  self-possession  in  the 
face  of  the  audience  appealed  to  him  strongly. 
Something  in  her  manner  of  dress  pleased  him,  it 
was  so  individual,  so  like  her  simple,  dignified, 
beautiful  self  in  every  line. 

She  spoke  more  quietly,  more  conversation 
ally  than  when  he  heard  her  before,  but  her  voice 
made  him  shudder  with  associated  emotions.  Its 
cadences  reached  deep,  and  the  words  she  spoke 
opened  long  vistas  in  his  mind.  She  was  defend 
ing  the  right  of  women  to  live  as  human  beings, 
to  act  as  human  beings,  and  to  develop  as  freely 
as  men. 

"I  claim  the  right  to  be  an  individual  human 
being  first  and  a  woman  afterward.  Why  should 
the  accident  of  my  sex  surround  me  with  conven 
tional  and  arbitrary  limitations  ?  I  claim  the  same 
right  to  find  out  what  I  can  do  and  can't  do  that 
a  man  has.  Who  is  to  determine  what  my  sphere 
is  —  men  and  men's  laws  or  my  own  nature  ? 
These  are  vital  questions.  I  deny  the  right  of 
any  man  to  mark  out  the  path  in  which  I  shall 
walk.  I  claim  the  same  right  to  life,  liberty,  and 
the  pursuit  of  happiness  that  men  are  demanding. 

"It  is    not    a   question    of    suffrage    merely  — 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  143 

suffrage  is  the  smaller  part  of  the  woman-question 
—  it  is  a  question  of  equal  rights.  It  is  a  ques 
tion  of  whether  the  law  of  liberty  applies  to 
humanity  or  to  men  only.  Absolute  liberty 
bounded  only  by  the  equal  liberties  of  the  rest  of 
humanity  is  the  real  goal  of  the  race  —  not  of  man 
only,  but  woman  too." 

The  ladies  dimly  feeling  that  liberty  was  a  safe 
thing  to  cheer,  clapped  their  hands  softly  under 
the  cover  of  the  nosier  clapping  of  a  few  radicals 
who  knew  what  the  speaker  was  really  saying. 
Bradley  did  not  cheer  —  he  was  thinking  too 
deeply. 

"  The  woman  question  is  not  a  political  one 
merely,  it  is  an  economic  one.  The  real  problem 
is  the  wage  problem,  the  industrial  problem.  The 
real  question  is  woman's  dependence  upon  man 
as  the  bread-winner.  So  long  as  that  dependence 
exists  there  will  be  weakness.  No  individual  can 
stand  at  their  strongest  and  best  while  leaning 
upon  some  other.  I  believe  with  Browning  and 
Ruskin  that  the  development  of  personality  is  the 
goal  of  the  race." 

The  ladies  took  it  for  granted  that  this  was  true 
as  it  was  bolstered  by  two  great  names.  A  few, 
however,  sat  with  wrinkled  brows  scenting  some 
thing  heretical  in  all  that. 


144  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

"The  time  is  surely  coming  when  women  can 
no  longer  bear  to  be  dependent,  to  be  pitied  or 
abused  by  men.  They  will  want  to  stand  upright 
and  independent  by  their  husbands,  claiming  the 
same  rights  to  freedom  of  action,  and  demanding 
equal  pay  for  equal  work.  She  must  be  able  to 
earn  her  own  living  in  an  honorable  way  at  a 
moment's  notice.  Then  she  will  be  a  free  woman 
even  if  she  never  leaves  her  kitchen." 

It  was  trite  enough  to  a  few  of  the  audience, 
but,  to  others,  it  was  new,  and  to  many  it  was 
revolutionary.  She  was  destined  to  again  set  a 
stake  in  Bradley's  mental  horizon.  The  woman 
question  had  not  engaged  his  attention ;  at  least 
not  in  any  serious  way.  He  had  not  thought  of 
woman  as  having  any  active  part  in  living.  In 
the  thoughtless  way  of  the  average  man,  he  had 
ignored  or  idealized  women  according  as  they 
appealed  to  his  eye.  He  had  not  risen  to  the 
point  of  pitying  or  condemning,  or  in  any  way 
consciously  placing  them  in  the  social  economy. 

The  speaker  had  appealed  to  his  imagination 
before,  and  now  again  he  sat  absolutely  motionless 
while  great  new  thoughts  and  impersonal  emotions 
sprang  up  in  his  brain.  He  saw  women  in  a  new 
light,  and  the  aloofness  of  the  speaker  grew  upon 
him  again.  He  felt  that  she  was  holding:  her 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  145 

place  as  his  teacher.  Around  him  he  heard  the 
rustle  of  approval  upon  the  gown  she  wore,  upon 
her  voice,  and  some  few  favorable  comments  upon 
her  ideas.  He  saw  some  of  the  people  crowd 
forward  to  shake  her  hand,  while  others  went  out 
talking  excitedly. 

He  lingered  as  long  as  he  dared,  longing  to  go 
forward  to  greet  her,  but  he  went  slowly  out  at 
last,  home  to  his  boarding  place  and  sat  down  in 
his  habitual  attitude  when  in  deep  thought,  his 
elbow  on  his  knee,  his  chin  in  his  palm.  He 
wanted  to  see  her,  he  must  see  her  and  tell  her 
how  much  she  had  done  for  him. 

How  to  do  it  was  the  question  which  absorbed 
him  now.  He  got  away  from  the  noisy  merri 
ment  of  the  house,  out  into  the  street  again. 
The  stars  were  more  congenial  company  to  him 
now ;  under  their  passionless  serenity  he  could 
think  better.  He  felt  that  he  must  come  to  an 
understanding  with  himself  soon,  but  he  put  it 
off  and  turned  his  attention  to  his  future,  and 
more  immediately  to  the  plans  which  must  be 
carried  out,  of  seeing  her. 

When  he  came  in  he  was  desperately  resolved. 
He  would  go  to  see  her  on  the  next  day  in  her 
hotel.  He  justified  himself  by  saying  that  she 
was  a  lecturer,  a  person  before  the  public,  and 


146  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

that  she  would  not  think  it  strange ;  anyhow,  he 
was  going  to  do  it. 

In  the  broad  daylight,  however,  it  was  not  so 
easy  as  it  seemed  under  the  magic  of  the  moon. 
The  conventions  of  the  world  always  count  for 
less  in  the  company  of  the  moon  and  the  stars. 
He  heard  during  the  morning  that  she  was  going 
away  in  the  afternoon,  and  he  was  made  desper 
ate.  He  started  out  to  go  straight  to  the  hotel, 
and  he  did,  but  he  walked  by  it,  once,  twice,  a 
half  dozen  times,  each  time  feeling  weaker  and 
more  desperate  in  his  resolution. 

At  length  he  deliberately  entered  and  aston 
ished  himself  by  walking  up  to  the  clerk  and 
asking  for  Miss  Wilbur. 

The  clerk  turned  briskly  and  looked  at  the 
pigeon-holes  for  the  keys.  "I  think  she  is. 
Send  up  a  card  ?  " 

True,  he  hadn't  thought  of  that.  He  had  no 
cards.  He  received  one  from  the  clerk  that 
looked  as  if  it  had  done  duty  before,  and  scrawled 
his  name  upon  it,  and  gave  it  to  the  insolent  lit 
tle  darky  who  served  as  "Front." 

"Tell  her  I'd  like  to  see  her  just  a  few 
minutes." 

On    the    stairs    he    tried    to   prepare   what    he 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  147 

should  say  to  her.  His  mouth  already  felt  dry, 
and  his  brain  was  a  mere  swirl  of  gray  and  white 
matter.  Almost  without  knowing  how,  he  found 
himself  seated  in  the  ladies'  parlor,  to  which  the 
boy  had  conducted  him.  It  was  a  barren  little 
place,  in  spite  of  its  excessively  florid  gilt  and 
crimson  paper,  and  its  ostentatious  harsh  red- 
plush  furniture. 

His  heart  sent  the  blood  into  his  throat  till  it 
ached  with  the  tension.  His  lips  quivered  and 
turned  pale  as  he  heard  the  slow  sweep  of  a 
woman's  dress,  and  there  she  stood  before  him, 
with  smiling  face  and  extended  hand.  "  Are  you 
Mr.  Talcott  ?  Did  you  want  to  see  me  ?" 

She  had  the  frank  gesture  and  ready  smile  a 
kindly  man  would  have  used.  Instantly  his  brain 
cleared,  his  heart  ceased  to  pound,  and  the  numb 
ness  left  his  limbs.  He  forgot  himself  utterly. 
He  only  saw  and  heard  her.  He  found  himself 
saying  : 

"I  wanted  to  come  in  and  tell  you  how  much 
I  liked  your  speech  last  night,  and  how  much  I 
liked  a  speech  you  made  up  at  Rock  River,  at  the 
grange  picinic." 

"  Oh,  did  you  hear  me  up  there  ?  That  was 
one  of  my  old  speeches.  I've  quite  outgrown 
that  now.  You'll  be  shocked  to  know  I  don't 


148  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

believe  in  a  whole  lot  of  things  that  I  used  to 
believe  in."  As  she  talked,  she  looked  at  him 
precisely  as  one  man  looks  at  another,  without  the 
slightest  false  modesty  or  coquettishness.  She 
evidently  considered  him  a  fellow-student  on  social 
affairs.  "I'm  glad  you  liked  my  talk  on  the 
woman  question.  It  was  dreadfully  radical  to  the 
most  of  my  audience." 

"  It  was  right,"  Bradley  said,  and  their  minds 
seemed  to  come  together  at  that  point  as  if  by  an 
electrical  shock.  "  I  never  thought  of  it  before. 
Women  have  been  kept  down.  We  do  claim  to 
know  better  what  she  ought  to  do  than  she  knows 
herself.  The  trouble  is  we  men  don't  think  about 
it  at  all.  We  need  to  have  you  tell  us  these 
things." 

"Yes,  that's  true.  As  soon  as  I  made  that 
discovery  I  began  talking  the  woman  question. 
One  radicalism  opened  the  way  to  the  other. 
Being  a  radical  is  like  opening  the  door  to  the 
witches.  Are  you  one?"  she  asked,  with  a  sud 
den  smile,  "I  mean  a  radical,  not  a  witch." 

"I  don't  know,"  he  replied  simply,  "I'm  a 
student.  I  know  I  can't  agree  with  some  people 
on  these  things." 

"  Some  people !  Sometimes  I  feel  it  would  be 
good  to  meet  with  a  single  person  —  a  single 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  149 

one  —  I  could  agree  with!  But  tell  me  of  your 
self —  are  you  in  the  grange  movement  ?" 

"Well,  not  exactly,  but  I've  helped  all  I 
could." 

"  What  is  the  condition  of  the  grange  in  your 
county  ? " 

"It  seems  to  be  going  down." 

She  was  silent  for  some  time.  Her  face  sad 
dened  with  deep  thought.  "  Yes,  I'm  afraid  it 
is.  The  farmers  can't  seem  to  hold  together. 
Strange,  aint  it  ?  Other  trades  and  occupations 
have  their  organizations  and  stand  by  each  other, 
but  the  farmer  can't  seem  to  feel  his  kinship. 
Well,  I  suppose  he  must  suffer  greater  hardships 
before  he  learns  his  lesson.  But  God  help  the 
poor  wives  while  he  learns  !  But  he  must  learn," 
she  ended  firmly.  "  He  must  come  some  day  to 
see  that  to  stand  by  his  fellow-man  is  to  stand  by 
himself.  That's  what  civilization  means,  to  stand 
by  each  other." 

Bradley  did  not  reply.  He  was  looking  upon 
her,  with  eyes  filled  with  adoration.  He  had 
never  heard  such  words  from  the  lips  of  anyone. 
He  had  never  seen  a  woman  sit  lost  in  philoso 
phic  thought  like  this.  Her  bent  head  seemed 
incredibly  beautiful  to  him,  and  her  simple  flow 
ing  dress,  royal  purple.  Her  presence  destroyed 


150  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

his  power  of  thought.      He  simply  waited  for  her 
to  go  on. 

"The  farmer  lacks  comparative  ideas,"  she  went 
on.  "He  don't  know  how  poor  he  is.  If  he  once 
finds  it  out,  let  the  politicians  and  their  masters, 
the  money-changers,  beware  !  But  while  he's  find 
ing  it  out,  his  children  will  grow  up  in  ignorance, 
and  his  wife  die  of  overwork.  Oh,  sometimes  I 
lose  heart."  Her  voice  betrayed  how  strongly 
she  perceived  the  almost  hopeless  immensity  of 
the  task.  "The  farmer  must  learn  that  to  help 
himself,  he  must  help  others.  That  is  the  great 
lesson  of  modern  society.  Don't  you  think  so?" 

"  I  don't  know.  I'm  losing  my  hold  on  things 
that  I  used  to  believe  in.  I've  come  to  believe 
the  system  of  protection  is  wrong."  He  said  this 
in  a  tone  absurdly  solemn  as  if  he  had  somehow 
questioned  the  law  of  gravity. 

"Of  course  it  is  wrong,"  she  said.  "The 
moment  I  got  East,  I  found  free-trade  in  the  air, 
and  my  uncle,  who  is  a  manufacturer,  admitted  it 
was  all  right  in  theory,  but  it  wouldn't  do  as  a 
practical  measure.  That  finished  me.  I'm  a 
woman,  you  know,  and  when  a  thing  appears  right 
in.  theory,  I  believe  it'll  be  right  in  practice. 
Expediency  don't  count  with  me,  you  see.  But 
tell  me,  do  you  still  live  in  Rock  River  ? " 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  151 

"Yes,  I'm  only  studying  law  down  here." 

"Oh,  I  see.  I  suppose  you  know  many  of  the 
people  at  Rock  River."  She  asked  about  Milton, 
whom  she  remembered,  and  about  Mr.  Deering. 
Then  she  returned  again  to  the  subject  of  the 
grange.  "  Yes,  it  has  been  already  a  great  force, 
but  I  begin  to  suspect  that  the  time  is  coming 
when  it  must  include  more  or  fail.  I  don't  know 
just  what  —  I  aint  quite  clear  upon  it  —  but  as  it 
stands  now,  it  seems  inadequate." 

She  ended  very  slowly,  her  chin  in  her  palm, 
her  eyes  on  the  floor.  She  made  a  grand  picture 
of  thought,  something  more  active  than  medita 
tion.  Her  dress  trailed  in  long,  sweeping  lines, 
and  against  its  rich  dark  purple  folds  her  strong, 
white  hands  lay  in  vivid  contrast.  The  most 
wonderful  charm  of  her  personality  was  her  com 
plete  absorption  in  thought,  or  the  speech  of  her 
visitor.  She  was  interested  in  this  keen-eyed, 
strong-limbed  young  fellow  as  a  possible  convert 
and  reformer.  She  wanted  to  state  herself  clearly 
and  fully  to  him.  He  was  a  fine  listener. 

"  I'm  afraid  I  see  a  tendency  that  is  directly 
away  from  my  ideal  of  a  farming  community. 
There  is  a  force  operating  to  destroy  the  grange 
and  all  other  such  movements." 

"You  mean  politics?" 
ii 


152  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

"No,  I  mean  land  monopoly.  I  believe  in 
thickly  settled  farming  communities,  communities 
where  every  man  has  a  small,  highly  cultivated 
farm.  That's  what  I've  been  advocating  and 
prophesying,  but  I  now  begin  to  see  that  our 
system  of  ownership  in  land  is  directly  against 
this  security,  and  directly  against  thickly-settled 
farming  communities.  The  big  land  owners  are 
swallowing  up  the  small  farmers,  and  turning  them 
into  renters  or  laborers.  Don't  you  think  so?" 

"I  hadn't  though  of  it  before,  but  I  guess  that's 
so  —  up  in  our  county,  at  least." 

"  It's  so  everywhere  I've  been.  I  don't  under 
stand  it  yet,  but  I'm  going  to.  In  the  meantime 
I  am  preaching  union  and  education.  I  don't  see 
the  end  of  it,  but  I  know" —  Here  she  threw 
off  her  doubt  —  "I  know  that  the  human  mind 
cannot  be  chained.  I  know  the  love  of  truth  and 
justice  cannot  be  destroyed,  and  marches  on  from 
age  to  age,  and  that's  why  I  am  full  of  confidence. 
The  farmer  is  beginning  to  compare  his  mortgaged 
farm  with  the  banker's  mansion  and  his  safe,  and 
no  one  can  see  the  end  of  his  thinking.  The 
great  thing  is  his  thinking." 

She  arose  and  gave  him  her  hand.  "I'm  glad 
you  came  in.  Give  my  regards  to  Mr.  Deering 
and  other  friends,  won't  you  ?  Tell  them  not  to 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  153 

think  I'm  not  working  because  I'm  no  longer  their 
lecturer.  You  ought  to  be  in  the  field.  Will  you 
read  something  which  I'll  send  ?  "  she  asked,  the 
zeal  of  the  reformer  getting  the  upper  hand 
again. 

"  Certainly.     I  should  be  very  glad  to." 

"  I'll  send  you  some  pamphlets  I've  been  read 
ing."  Her  voice  seemed  to  say  the  interview  was 
ended,  but  Bradley  did  not  go.  He  was  strug 
gling  to  speak.  After  a  significant  pause,  he  said 
in  a  low  voice  : 

"I'd  —  I'd  like  to  write  to  you  —  if  you  don't 
—  mind." 

Her  eyes  widened  just  a  line,  but  they  did  not 
waver.  "I  should  like  to  hear  from  you,"  she 
said  cordially.  "  I'd  like  to  know  what  you  think 
of  those  pamphlets,  which  I'll  surely  send." 

He  had  the  courage  to  look  once  more  into  her 
brown  eyes,  with  their  red-gold  deeps,  as  he  shook 
hands.  The  clasp  of  her  hand  was  firm  and 
frank. 

"  Good-by  !  I  hope  I  shall  see  you  again.  My 
address  is  always  Des  Moines,  though  I'm  on  the 
road  a  great  deal." 

Out  into  the  open  air  again  he  passed  like  a 
man  sanctified.  It  seemed  impossible  that  he  had 
not  only  seen  her,  but  had  retained  his  self-pos- 


154  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

session,  and  had  actually  dared  to  ask  permission 
to  write  to  her  ! 

The  red-gold  sunlight  was  flaming  across  the 
snow,  and  the  shadows  stood  out  upon  the  shin 
ing  expanse  vivid  as  stains  in  ink.  The  sky, 
aflame  with  orange  and  gold  clouds,  was  thrown 
into  loftier  relief  by  the  serrate  blue  rim  of  trees 
that  formed  the  western  horizon.  As  he  walked, 
he  had  a  reckoning  with  himself.  It  could  not 
longer  be  delayed. 

He  had  been  a  boy  to  this  day,  but  that  hour 
made  him  a  man,  and  he  knew  he  was  a  lover. 
Not  that  he  used  that  word,  for  like  the  farm-born 
man  that  he  was,  he  did  not  say,  "I  love  her," 
but  he  lifted  his  face  to  the  sky  in  an  unuttered 
resolution  to  be  worthy  her. 

He  had  come  under  the  spell  of  her  womanly 
presence.  He  had  seen  her  in  her  house-dress, 
and  his  admiration  for  her  intellect  and  beauty 
had  added  to  itself  a  subtle  quality,  which  rose 
from  the  potential  husbandship  and  fatherhood 
within  him. 

Now  that  he  was  out  of  her  immediate  pres 
ence,  thoughts  came  thick  and  fast.  Every  word 
she  had  spoken  seemed  to  have  a  magical  power 
of  arousing  long  trains  of  speculation.  He 
walked  far  out  into  the  quiet  evening,  walked 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  155 

until  he  grew  calmer,  and  the  emotion  of  the  hour 
faded  to  a  luminous  golden  dusk  in  his  mind  as 
the  day  changed  into  the  beautiful  winter  night. 

As  he  sat  down  at  his  desk,  an  hour  later,  he 
saw  a  letter  lying  there.  It  was  one  of  Nettie's 
poor  little  school-girl  love  letters.  A  feeling  of 
disgust  and  shame  seized  him.  He  crumpled  the 
letter  in  his  hands,  and  was  on  the  point  of  throw- 
ihg  it  away,  when  his  mood  changed,  and  he  soft 
ened.  By  the  side  of  Miss  Wilbur  poor  little 
Nettie  was  a  willful  child. 

A  few  days  after  there  came  to  him  a  pamphlet 
directed  in  a  woman's  hand.  Its  title  page  struck 
him  as  something  utterly  new,  but  it  was  only  the 
first  of  a  flood  of  similar  publications. 

"The  Coming  Conflict.  A  Series  of  Lectures 
prophetic  of  the  Coming  Revolution  of  the  Poor, 
when  they  will  rise  against  the  National  Banks 
and  against  all  Indirect  Taxation." 

Its  dedication  was  marked  with  a  pencil  and  he 
read  it  over  and  over :  "  To  the  Toiling  Millions 
who  produce  all  the  wealth,  yet  because  they  have 
never  controlled  legislation,  have  been  impover 
ished  by  unjust  laws  made  in  the  interests  of  the 
Land-holder  and  the  Money-changer,  who  seize 
upon  and  hold  the  surplus  wealth  of  the  nation  by 


156  A  SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

the  same  right  that  the  slave-master  held  his 
slave,  legal  right  and  that  alone,  this  tract  is 
inscribed  by  the  author." 

It  was  Bradley's  first  intimation  of  the  mighty 
forces  beginning  to  stir  in  the  deeps  of  American 
society.  He  found  the  pamphlet  filled  with  great 
confusing  thoughts.  He  confessed  frankly  in  his 
letter  to  Miss  Wilbur  that  he  got  nothing  satis 
factory  out  of  it,  though  it  made  him  think. 

It  was  astonishing  to  himself  to  find  his 
thoughts  flowing  out  to  her  upon  paper  with  the 
greatest  ease.  He  was  stricken  with  fear  after 
he  had  mailed  his  letter,  it  was  so  bulky.  He 
was  appalled  at  the  length  of  time  which  must 
pass  before  he  might  reasonably  expect  to  hear 
from  her.  He  counted  the  days,  the  hours  that 
intervened.  Her  note  came  at  last,  and  it  made 
his  blood  leap  as  the  clerk  flung  it  out  with  a 
grin.  "  She's  blessed  yeh  this  time !  "  It  was  a 
red-headed  clerk,  and  his  grin,  by  reason  of  a  quid 
of  tobacco  in  his  thin  cheek,  was  particularly 
offensive.  Bradley  felt  an  impulse  to  call  him 
out  of  his  box  and  whip  him. 

When  he  opened  the  letter  in  his  own  room  he 
felt  a  sort  of  fear.  How  would  she  reply  ?  The 
letter  gave  out  a  faint  perfume  like  that  he 
remembered  floated  with  her  dress.  It  was  a 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  157 

rather  brief  note,  but  very  kind.  She  called  his 
attention  to  two  or  three  passages  in  the  pam 
phlet,  and  especially  asked  him  to  read  the  chap 
ters  touching  on  the  land  and  money  questions. 
But  the  part  over  which  he  spent  the  most  time 
was  the  paragraph  at  the  close : 

"  I  liked  your  letter  very  much.  It  shows  a  sincere  desire  for 
the  truth.  You  will  never  stop  short  of  the  truth,  I'm  sure,  but 
yon  will  have  sacrifices  to  make  —  you  must  expect  that.  I  shall 
take  great  interest  in  your  work. 

"  Very  sincerely, 

"!DA  WILBUR." 


158  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 


XIV. 
BRADLEY    CHANGES    HIS    POLITICAL    VIEWS. 

THE  West  had  always  been  Republican.  Its 
States  had  come  into  the  Union  as  Republican 
States.  It  met  the  solid  South  with  a  solid 
North-west  year  after  year,  and  it  firmly  believed 
that  the  salvation  of  the  nation's  life  depended  on 
its  fidelity  to  the  war  traditions  and  on  the  princi 
ple  of  protection  to  American  industries. 

Its  orators  waved  the  bloody  shirt  to  keep  the 
party  together,  though  each  election  placed  the 
war  and  its  issues  farther  into  the  background 
of  history,  and  an  increasing  number  of  people 
deprecated  the  action  of  fanning  smouldering 
embers  into  flame  again.  Iowa  and  Kansas  and 
Nebraska  were  Stalwarts  of  the  Stalwart.  Kan 
sas  was  the  battle-ground  of  the  old  Abolition  and 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  159 

Free  Soil  forces,  and  their  traditions  kept  alive  a 
love  and  reverence  for  the  Republican  party  long 
after  its  real  leaders  had  passed  away,  and  long 
after  it  had  ceased  to  be  the  party  of  the  people. 

Iowa  was  hopelessly  Republican,  also.  A  strong 
force  in  the  Rebellion,  dominated  by  New  Eng 
land  thought,  its  industries  predominantly  agricul 
tural,  it  held  rigidly  to  its  Republicanism,  and 
trained  its  young  men  to  believe  that,  while  "all 
Democrats  were  not  thieves,  all  thieves  were 
Democrats,"  and,  when  pressed  to  the  wall, 
admitted,  reluctantly,  that  there  were  "some  good 
men  among  the  Democrats." 

In  the  fall  of  Bradley's  last  year  at  Iowa  City, 
another  presidential  campaign  was  coming  on, 
but  few  men  considered  that  there  was  any 
change  impending.  Local  fights  really  supplied 
the  incitement  to  action  among  the  Republican 
leaders.  There  was  no  statement  of  a  general 
principle,  no  discussion  of  economic  issues  by 
their  political  leaders.  They  carefully  avoided 
anything  like  a  discussion  of  the  real  condition 
of  the  people. 

Rock  County  had  been  the  banner  Republi 
can  county.  For  years  the  Democrats  of  Rock 
County  had  met  in  annual  convention  to  nom 
inate  a  ticket  which  they  had  not  the  slightest 


160  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

expectation  of  electing.  There  was  something 
pathetic  in  the  habit.  It  was  not  faith  —  it  was  a 
sort  of  desperation ;  and  yet  the  Republicans  as 
regularly  had  their  joke  about  it,  regardless  of 
the  pathos  presented  in  the  action  of  a  body  of 
men  thus  fighting  a  forlorn  and  hopeless  battle. 
Each  year  some  old-fashioned  Democrat  dropped 
away  into  the  grave,  and  yet  the  remnant  met  and 
nominated  a  complete  ticket,  and  voted  for  it 
solemnly,  even  religiously. 

The  young  Republicans  of  the  county  called 
this  remnant  "Free  traders"  and  "Copperheads," 
exactly  as  if  the  terms  were  synonymous.  The 
Republican  boys  of  the  country  felt  that  there 
was  something  mysteriously  uncanny  in  the  term 
"  Free  Trader  "  (and  always  associated  "  Copper 
head  "  with  the  yellow-backed  rattlesnakes  that 
made  their  dens  in  the  limestone  cliffs),  and  in 
their  snowballing  took  sides  with  these  mysterious 
words  as  shibboleths. 

In  truth,  many  of  these  Democrats  were  very 
thoughtful  men  —  old-line  Jeffersonians,  who  held 
to  a  principle  of  liberty.  Others  had  been  born 
Democrats  a  half-century  ago,  and  had  never  been 
able  to  make  any  change.  They  continued  the 
habit  of  being  Democrats,  just  as  they  continued 
the  habit  of  wearing  fuzzy  old  plug  hats,  of  old- 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  161 

fashioned  shapes,  and  long,  polished  frock  coats. 
Then  there  were  a  few  of  that  perpetually  cross- 
grained  class  who  will  never  agree  with  anybody 
else  if  they  can  help  it.  They  belonged  to  the 
Democracy  because  the  Democrats  were  in  the 
minority,  and  considered  it  wrong  to  belong  to  a 
majority,  anyhow.  Of  this  sort  were  men  like 
Colonel  Peavy  and  old  Judd  Colwell. 

The  Colonel  had  been  nominated  for  treasurer 
and  Colwell  for  sheriff  on  the  Democratic  ticket 
year  after  year,  and  each  year  the  leaders  of  the 
party  had  prophesied  decided  gains,  but  they  did 
not  come.  The  State  remained  apparently  hope 
lessly  Republican.  The  forces  which  were  really 
preparing  for  change  were  too  far  below  the  sur 
face  for  these  old-line  politicians  to  understand 
and  measure. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  schools  and  debating 
clubs  and  newspapers  were  preparing  the  whole 
country  for  a  political  revolution.  Radicals  were 
everywhere  being  educated.  Men  like  Radbourn, 
who  still  remained  nominally  a  Republican,  and  a 
host  of  other  young  men  and  progressive  men 
were  becoming  disabused  of  the  protective  idea, 
and  were  ready  for  a  revolt.  There  needed  but  a 
change  of  leadership  to  make  a  change  of  the 
relation  of  parties  and  of  party  names. 


162  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

The  Grange,  which  was  still  non-partisan, 
seemed  not  destined  to  play  a  very  strong  part 
in  politics,  though  it  was  still  at  work  wresting 
some  advanced  forms  of  legislation  from  one  or 
the  other  of  the  old  parties. 

But  the  deeper  change  was  one  which  Judge 
Brown  and  a  few  of  the  progressive  men  had  only 
just  dimly  perceived.  The  war  and  the  issues  of 
the  war  were  slowly  drawing  off.  The  militant 
was  being  lost  in  the  problems  of  the  industrial. 
Each  year  a  larger  mass  of  people  practically  said, 
"The  issues  of  to-day  are  not  the  issues  of 
twenty-five  years  ago.  The  bloody  shirt  is  an 
anachronism." 

Here  and  there  a  young  man  coming  to  matur 
ity  caught  the  spirit  of  the  new  era,  and  turned 
away  from  the  talk  of  the  solid  South,  and 
addressed  himself  to  a  consideration  of  the  ques 
tions  of  taxation  and  finance.  These  men  formed 
a  growing  power  in  the  State,  and  chafed  under 
the  restraint  of  their  leaders. 

And  above  all,  death,  the  great  pacificator, 
unlooser  of  bonds,  and  aider  of  progress,  was 
doing  his  work.  The  old  men  were  dying  and 
carrying  their  prejudices  with  them,  while  each 
year  thousands  of  young  voters,  to  whom  the  war 
was  an  echo  of  passion,  sprang  to  the  polls  and 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  163 

faced  the  future  policy  of  the  parties,  not  their 
past.  Not  only  all  over  the  State  of  Iowa,  but 
all  over  the  West,  they  were  silent  factors,  in  many 
cases  kept  so  by  the  all-compelling  power  of  party 
ties ;  but  they  represented  a  growing  power,  and 
they  were  to  become  leaders  in  their  turn. 

This  spreading  radicalism  reached  Bradley  in 
the  quiet  of  his  life  in  Iowa  City.  The  young 
fellows  in  the  school  were  debating  it  with  fierce 
enthusiasm,  and  several  of  them  capitulated. 
They  all  recognized  that  the  liquor  question  once 
out  of  the  way,  the  tariff  was  the  next  great  State 
issue.  At  the  Judge's  suggestion,  Bradley  did 
not  return  to  Rock  River  during  vacation,  but 
spent  the  time  reading  with  a  prominent  lawyer 
of  the  town  who  had  a  very  fine  law  library. 

He  did  not  care  to  return  particularly,  for  the 
quiet  studious  life  he  led,  almost  lonely,  had  grown 
to  be  very  pleasant  to  him.  He  read  a  great  deal 
outside  his  law,  and  enjoyed  his  days  as  he  had 
never  done  before.  Uuconsciously  he  had  fallen 
into  a  mode  of  life  and  a  habit  of  thought  which 
were  unfitting  him  for  a  politician's  career.  He 
gave  very  little  thought  to  that,  however;  his 
ambition  for  the  time  had  taken  a  new  form.  He 
wished  to  be  well  read  ;  to  be  a  scholar  such  as 
he  imagined  Miss  Wilbur  to  be. 


1C4  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

He  began  reading  for  that  purpose,  and  kept  at 
it  because  he  really  had  the  literary  perception. 
He  wrote  to  her  of  his  reading;  and  when  in  her 
reply  she  mentioned  some  book  which  he  had  not 
read,  he  searched  for  it,  and  read  it  as  soon  as 
possible.  In  this  quiet  way  he  spent  his  days, 
the  happiest  he  had  ever  known. 

He  had  just  two  disturbing  factors  :  one  was 
Nettie's  relation  to  him,  and  the  other  was  his 
desire  to  see  Miss  Wilbur.  Nettie  wrote  quite 
often  at  first,  letters  all  very  much  alike,  and  very 
short,  sending  love  and  kisses.  She  was  not  a 
good  letter  writer,  and  even  under  the  inspiration 
of  love  could  not  write  above  two  pages  of  rep 
etitious  matter.  "It's  dreadfully  hard  work  to 
write,"  she  kept  saying.  "I  wish  you  was  to 
home.  When  are  you  coming  back?" 

It  was  very  curious  to  see  the  different  way  in 
which  he  came  to  the  writing  of  letters  to  these 
two  persons. 

"Dear  Nettie,"  he  would  begin,  with  a  scowl 
ing  brow,  "I  cant  write  any  oftener,  because  in 
the  first  place  I'm  too  busy,  and  in  the  second 
place  nothing  happened  here  that  you  would  care 
to  hear  about.  I  don't  know  when  I'll  be  home. 
I  ought  to  finish  my  course  here.  No,  I  don't 
expect  you  to  mope.  I  expect  you  to  have  a 


A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  165 

good    time,    go    to    parties    and    dances    all    you 
want  to." 

But  when  Miss  Wilbur's  letters  arrived,  he 
devoured  them  with  tremulous  eagerness,  and  sat 
up  half  the  night  writing  an  elaborate  answer, 
while  Nettie's  letters  lay  unanswered  for  days. 

"Miss  Ida  Wilbur,  Dear  Miss."  (That  was 
the  way  he  addressed  her.  He  was  afraid  to  call- 
her  Dear  Miss  Wilbur,  it  seemed  a  little  too  famil 
iar.)  In  the  body  of  his  letters  there  was  no 
expressed  word  of  his  regard  for  her.  It  was 
only  put  indirectly  into  the  length  of  his  letters, 
and  was  shown  in  the  eager  promptness  of  his 
reply.  She  wrote  kindly,  scholarly  replies,  giving 
him  a  great  deal  to  think  about.  Her  letters 
were  very  far  apart,  however,  as  she  was  moving 
about  so  much.  She  advised  him  to  read  the 
modern  books. 

"I'm  always  on  the  wrong  side  of  everything," 
she  wrote  once,  "so  I'm  on  the  side  of  the  mod 
ern  novel.  I  champion  Mr.  Howells.  Are  you 
reading  his  story  in  the  Century?  I  like  it 
because  it  isn't  like  anybody  else ;  and  Mr.  Cable, 
too,  you  should  read,  and  Henry  James  and  Miss 
Jewett ;  they're  all  of  this  modern  school,  that 
most  Western  people  know  nothing  about.  The 
West  is  so  afraid  of  its  own  judgments.  My 


166  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

friends  go  about  praising  the  classics  because 
they  know  it's  safe  to  do  so,  I  suppose,  while  I 
am  an  image  breaker  to  them.  Mr.  Howells  says 
the  idea  of  progress  in  art  does  not  admit  of  the 
conception  that  any  art  is  finished.  Just  like  the 
question  of  social  advance,  there  is  always  new 
work  to  be  done  and  new  victories  to  be  won." 

But  more  often  she  wrote  upon  economic  sub 
jects,  as  being  more  impersonal;  and  then  her 
wish  to  make  Bradley  a  reformer  was  greater  than 
her  desire  to  make  him  a  lover  of  modern  art. 

"The  spirit  of  reform  is  beginning  to  move 
over  the  face  of  the  great  deep,"  she  wrote  at 
another  time.  "  No  one  who  travels  about  as  I 
do,  can  fail  to  see  it.  The  labor  question  in  the 
cities,  and  the  farmer  question  in  the  country, 
will  soon  be  the  great  disturbing  factors  in  poli 
tics.  The  protective  theory  will  go  down :  it  is 
based  on  a  privilege ;  and  the  new  war,  like  the 
old  war,  is  going  to  be  against  all  kinds  of  special 
privileges." 

It  was  with  a  peculiar  feeling  of  pain  and  relief 
that  he  read  Miss  Wilbur's  renunciation  of  her 
home-market  idea.  It  seemed  as  if  something 
sweet  and  fine  had  gone  with  it ;  and  yet  it 
strengthened  him,  for  he  had  come  to  believe  that 
a  home-market  built  up  by  legislation  was  unnatu- 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  1G7 

ral  and  a  mistake.  Judge  Brown's  constant  ham 
merings  had  left  a  mark. 

He  wrote  to  her  something  of  his  hesitation, 
and  she  replied  substantially  that  there  was  no 
abandonment  of  the  home-market  idea ;  only  the 
method  of  bringing  it  about  had  changed.  She 
had  come  to  believe  in  what  was  free  and  natural, 
not  what  was  artificial  and  forced. 

"If  you  will  study  the  past,"  she  went  on,  "you 
will  find  that  advance  in  legislation  has  always 
been  in  the  direction  of  less  law,  less  granting  of 
special  privileges.  Take  the  time  of  the  Stuarts, 
for  example,  when  the  king  granted  monopolies  in 
the  sale  of  all  kinds  of  goods.  It  is  abhorrent  to 
us,  and  yet  I  suppose  those  protected  merchants 
believed  their  monopolies  to  be  rights.  Slowly 
these  rights  have  come  to  be  considered  wrongs, 
and  the  people  have  abolished  them.  So  all  other 
monopolies  will  be  abolished,  when  people  come 
to  see  that  it  is  an  infringement  of  liberty  to  have 
a  class  of  men  enjoying  any  special  privilege 
whatever.  The  way  to  build  up  a  home-market  is 
to  make  our  own  people  able  to  buy  what  they 
want. 

"There  never  was  a  time  when  our  own  people 
were  not  too  poor  to  buy  what  they  wanted. 
Goods  lie  rotting  in  our  Eastern  factories,  and  we 


168  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

export  many  products  which  the  farmer  would  be 
very  glad  to  consume,  if  he  were  able.  The 
farmer  is  poor;  but  it  isn't  because  he  needs 
protection,  it  isn't  because  he  doesn't  produce 
enough — it's  because  what  he  does  produce  is 
taken  from  him  by  bankers  and  corporations." 

Bradley  read  her  letters  over  and  over  again. 
Every  word  which  she  uttered  had  more  signifi 
cance  than  words  from  any  one  else.  She  seemed 
a  marvellous  being  to  him.  He  looked  eagerly  in 
every  letter  for  some  personal  expression,  but  she 
seemed  carefully  to  avoid  that;  and  though  his 
own  letters  were  rilled  with  personalities,  she 
remained  studiously  impersonal.  She  replied  cord 
ially  and  kindly,  but  with  a  reserve  that  should 
have  been  a  warning  to  him ;  but  he  would  not 
accept  warnings  now  —  he  was  too  deeply  moved. 
Under  the  influence  of  her  letters  he  developed  a 
tremendous  capacity  for  work.  The  greatest  stim 
ulus  in  the  world  had  come  to  him,  and  remained 
with  him.  If  it  should  be  withdrawn  at  any  time, 
it  would  weaken  him.  He  did  not  speculate  on 
that. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  169 


XV. 
HOME    AGAIN    WITH   THE   JUDGE. 

THE  day  that  came  to  close  his  work  at  Iowa 
City  had  something  of  an  awakening  effect  in  it. 
The  mere  motion  of  the  train  brought  back  again 
in  intensified  form  the  feelings  he  had  experienced 
on  the  day  he  left  Rock  River.  Life  was  really 
before  him  at  last.  His  studies  were  ended,  and 
he  was  prepared  for  his  entrance  into  law.  He 
looked  forward  to  a  political  career  indefinitely. 
He  left  that  in  the  hands  of  the  Judge. 

It  was  in  June,  and  the  country  was  very  beau 
tiful.  Groves  heavy  with  foliage,  rivers  curving 
away  into  the  glooms  of  bending  elm  and  bass- 
wood  trees,  fields  of  wheat  and  corn  alternating 
with  smooth  pastures  where  the  cattle  fed  —  a 
long  panorama  of  glorified  landscape  which  his 
escape  from  manual  labor  now  enabled  him  to  see 
the  beauty  of,  its  associations  of  toil  and  dirt  no 
longer  acutely  painful. 


170  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

He  thought  of  the  June  day  in  which  he  had 
first  met  Miss  Wilbur — just  such  a  day!  Then 
he  thought  of  Nettie  with  a  sudden  twinge.  She 
had  not  written  for  several  weeks  ;  he  really  didn't 
remember  just  when  she  had  written  last.  He 
wondered  what  it  meant ;  was  she  forgetting  him  ? 
He  hardly  dared  hope  for  it ;  it  was  such  an  easy 
way  out  of  his  difficulty. 

The  Judge  met  him  at  the  depot  with  a  car 
riage.  There  were  a  number  of  people  he  knew 
at  the  station,  but  they  did  not  recognize  him  : 
his  brown  beard  had  changed  him  so,  and  his  silk 
hat  made  him  so  tall. 

"Right  this  way,  colonel,"  said  the  Judge,  in  a 
calm  nasal.  He  was  filled  with  delight  at  Brad- 
ley's  appearance.  He  shook  hands  with  dignified 
reserve,  all  for  the  benefit  of  the  crowd  standing 
about.  "You  paralyzed  "em,"  he  chuckled,  as 
they  got  in  and  drove  off.  "  That  beard  and  hat 
will  fix  'em  sure.  I  was  afraid  you  wouldn't  carry 
out  my  orders  on  the  hat." 

"  The  hat  was  an  extravagance  for  your  benefit 
alone.  It  goes  into  a  band-box  to-morrow,"  replied 
Bradley.  "How's  Mrs.  Brown." 

"  Quite  well,  thank  you ;  little  older,  of  course. 
She  caught  a  bad  cold  somewhere  last  winter,  and 
she  hasn't  been  quite  so  well  since.  We  keep  a 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  171 

girl  now ;  I  forced  the  issue.  Mrs.  Brown  had 
done  her  own  work  so  long  she  considered  it  a 
sort  of  high  treason  to  let  any  one  else  in." 

Mrs.  Brown  met  him  at  the  door;  and  she 
looked  so  good  and  motherly,  and  there  was  such 
a  peculiar  wistful  look  in  her  eyes,  that  he  put 
his  arm  around  her  in  a  sudden  impulse  and  kissed 
her.  It  made  her  lips  tremble,  and  she  was 
obliged  to  wipe  her  glasses  before  she  could  see 
him  clearly.  Supper  was  on  the  table  for  him, 
and  she  made  him  sit  right  down. 

"  How  that  beard  changes  you,  Bradley !  I 
would  hardly  have  known  you.  What  will  Nettie 
think  ? " 

"  How  is  Nettie  ? " 

"  Haven't  you  heard  from  her  lately  ? " 

"Not  for  some  weeks." 

"Then  I  suppose  the  neighborhood  gossip  is 
true."  He  looked  at  her  inquiringly,  and  she 
went  on,  studying  his  face  carefully,  "They  say 
she's  soured  on  you,  and  is  sweet  on  her  father's 
new  book-keeper." 

Bradley  took  refuge  in  silence,  as  usual.  His 
face  became  thoughtful,  and  his  eyes  fell. 

"I've  hoped  it  was  true,  Bradley,  because  she 
was  no  wife  for  you.  You'd  outgrown  her,  and 
she'd  be  a  drag  about  your  neck.  I  see  her  out 


172  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

riding  a  good  deal  with  this  young  fellow;  he's 
just  her  sort,  so  I  guess  she  isn't  heart-broken 
over  your  absence." 

There  was  a  certain  shock  in  all  this.  He 
recurred  to  his  last  evening  with  her,  when  in  her 
paroxysm  of  agony  she  had  thrown  herself  at  his 
feet.  Much  as  he  had  desired  such  an  outcome, 
it  puzzled  him  to  find  her  in  love  with  some  one 
else.  It  was  not  at  all  like  books. 

"Well,  Mrs.  Brown,  what  do  you  think  of  my 
junior  partner?"  said  the  Judge,  coming  in  and 
looking  down  on  Bradley  with  a  fatherly  pride. 

"I  suppose,  Mr.  Brown,  you  refer  to  our 
adopted  son." 

Bradley  dressed  for  church  the  next  day  with  a 
new  sort  of  embarrassment.  He  felt  very  con 
scious  of  his  beard  and  of  his  tailor-made  clothes, 
for  he  knew  everybody  would  observe  any  change 
in  him.  He  knew  he  would  be  the  object  of 
greater  attention  than  the  service ;  but  he  determ 
ined  to  go,  and  have  the  whole  matter  over  at 
once. 

The  windows  were  open,  and  the  sound  of  the 
bell  came  in  mingled  with  the  scent  of  the  sunlit 
flowers,  the  soft  rustle  of  the  maple  leaves,  and 
the  sound  of  the  insects  in  the  grass.  His  heart 
turned  toward  Miss  Wilbur  now  whenever  any 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  173 

keen  enjoyment  came  to  him ;  instinctively  turned 
to  her,  with  the  wish  that  she  might  share  his 
pleasure  with  him.  He  sat  by  the  open  window, 
dreaming,  until  the  last  bell  sounded  through  the 
heavy  leaf-scented  air. 

"Won't  you  go  to  church  with  me,  Judge?"  he 
said,  going  out. 

The  Judge  turned  a  slow  look  upon  him.  He 
was  seated  on  the  shady  porch,  his  feet  on  the 
railing,  a  Chicago  daily  paper  in  his  lap.  He  said 
very  gravely :  "  Mrs.  Brown,  our  boy  is  going  to 
church." 

"Can't  you  let  him,  Mr.  Brown?  It'll  do  him 
good,  maybe,"  said  Mrs.  Brown,  who  was  at  work 
near  the  window. 

"  Goes  to  see  the  girls.  Know  all  about  it  my 
self.  Go  ahead,  young  man,  and  remember  the 
text  now,  or  we'll  put  a  stop  to  this"  —  Bradley 
went  off  down  the  walk.  He  passed  by  a  tiny 
little  box  of  a  house  where  a  man  in  his  shirt 
sleeves  was  romping  with  some  children. 

"Hello,  Milton,"  called  Bradley  cheerily. 

The  young  man  looked  up.  His  face  flashed 
into  a  broad  smile.  "Hello!  Brad  Talcott,  by 
thunder!  Well,  well.  When'd  you  get  back?" 

"Last  night.  Yours?"  he  inquired,  nodding 
toward  the  children. 


174  A  SPOIL   OF  OFFICE, 

"  Yep.  Well,  how  are  you,  old  man  ?  You 
look  well.  Couldn't  fool  me  with  that  beard. 
Come  in  and  sit  down,  won't  yeh  ?  " 

"  No,  I'm  on  my  way  to  church.  Can't  you 
come  ?  " 

"  Great  Caesar,  no  !  not  with  these  young  hyenas 
to  attend  to."  He  had  grown  fat,  and  his  chin 
beard  made  him  look  like  a  Methodist  minister; 
but  his  sunny  blue  eyes  laughed  up  into  Bradley's 
face  just  as  in  the  past.  "  Say ! "  he  exclaimed, 
"  you  struck  it  with  the  old  Judge,  didn't  you  ? 
He's  goin'  to  run  you  for  governor  one  of  these 
days.  County  treasurer  ain't  good  enough  for 
you.  But  say,"  he  said,  as  a  final  word,  "  I  guess 
you'd  better  not  wear  that  suit  much ;  it's ,  too 
soft  altogether.  Stop  in  when  you  come  back. 
Eileen'll  be  glad  to  see  you,"  he  called  after  him. 

The  audience  had  risen  to  sing  as  he  entered, 
and  he  took  his  place  without  attracting  much 
attention.  As  he  stood  there  listening  to  the 
familiar  Moody  and  Sankey  hymn,  there  came 
again  the  touch  of  awe  which  the  church  used  to 
put  upon  him.  He  was  not  a  "  religious "  man. 
He  had  no  more  thought  of  his  soul  or  his  future 
state  than  a  powerful  young  Greek.  His  feeling 
of  awe  arose  from  the  association  of  beauty,  music, 
and  love  with  a  church.  It  was  feminine,  some 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  175 

way,  and  shared  his  reverence  for  a  beautiful 
woman. 

The  churches  of  the  town  were  the  only  things 
of  a  public  nature  which  had  any  touch  of  beauty 
or  grace.  They  were  poor  little  wooden  boxes  at 
"best ;  and  yet  they  had  colored  windows,  which 
seemed  to  hush  the  dazzling  summer  sun  into  a 
dim  glory,  transfiguring  the  shabby  interior,  and 
making  the  bent  heads  of  the  girls  more  beautiful 
than  words  can  tell.  It  was  the  one  place  which 
was  set  apart  for  purposes  not  utilitarian,  and  a 
large  part  of  what  these  people  called  religious 
reverence  was  in  fact  a  pathetic  homage  to  beauty 
and  poetry,  and  rest. 

When  they  all  took  their  seats,  and  while  the 
preacher  was  praying,  Bradley  was  absorbing  the 
churchy  smell  of  fresh  linen,  "buoyant  perfumes, 
(camphor,  cinnamon,  violets,  rose)  and  the  hot, 
sweet  odor  of  newly-mown  grass  lying  under  the 
sun  just  outside  of  the  windows.  The  wind  pulsed 
in  through  the  half-swung  window,  a  bee  came 
buzzing  wildly  along,  a  butterfly  rested  an  instant 
on  the  window  sill,  and  the  preacher  prayed  on  in 
an  oratorical  way  for  the  various  departments  of 
government. 

Bradley  felt  a  sharp  eye  fixed  upon  him,  and, 
turning  cautiously,  caught  Nettie  looking  at  him, 


176  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

She  nodded  and  smiled  in  her  audacious  way. 
Two  or  three  of  the  young  fellows  saw  him  and 
nodded  at  him,  but  mainly  the  people  sat  with 
bowed  heads,  feeling  some  presence  that  was  full 
of  grace  and  power  to  banish,  for  a  short  time  at 
least  the  stress  of  the  struggle  to  live. 

The  young  fellows  were  mainly  in  the  back 
seats ;  and  while  they  were  decorously  quiet,  it 
was  evident  that  they  had  very  little  interest  in 
the  prayer.  Death  and  hell  and  the  grave! 
Why  should  one  trouble  himself  about  such  things 
when  the  red  blood  leaped  in  the  heart,  and  the 
June  wind  was  flinging  a  flickering  flight  of  leaf 
shadows  across  the  window  pane  ?  There  sat  the 
girls  with  roguish  eyes,  the  rounded  outline  of 
their  cheeks  (as  tempting  as  peaches),  displayed 
with  miraculous  skill  at  just  their  most  taking 
angle.  Their  Sunday  gowns  and  gloves  and  hats 
transfigured  them  into  something  too  dainty  and 
fine  to  be  touched,  and  yet  every  glance  and 
motion  was  an  invitation  and  a  lure. 

Here  was  the  proper  function  of  the  church  ;  to 
enable  these  young  people  to  see  each  other  at 
their  best,  and  to  bring  into  their  sordid  lives 
some  hint,  at  least,  of  music  and  beauty. 

Bradley  did  not  hear  the  sermon.  He  was 
wondering  just  what  Nettie's  smile  meant,  and 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  177 

what  he  was  going  to  say  to  her.  He  was  not 
subtle  enough  to  take  a  half-way  or  an  ambiguous 
stand.  He  must  either  treat  her  tenderness  as  a 
forgotten  thing  or  hold  himself  to  his  promise  as 
something  which  he  was  under  orders  from  his 
conscience  to  fulfill. 

When  the  service  was  over  he  went  out  into 
the  anteroom  with  the  young  fellows,  who  were 
anxious  to  meet  him.  Quite  a  number  of  farmers 
were  in  from  the  country,  and  they  all  crowded 
about,  shaking  his  hand  with  great  heartiness. 
He  moved  on  with  them  to  the  sidewalk,  where 
many  of  the  congregation  stood  talking  subduedly 
in  groups.  The  women  came  by  in  their  starched 
neatness,  leading  rebellious  boys  in  torturing 
suits  of  winter  thickness  topped  with  collars,  stiff 
as  sauce  pans ;  while  the  little  girls  walked  as 
upright  as  dolls,  looking  disdainfully  at  their  sulk 
ing  brothers.  Some  of  the  merchants  passing  by 
discussed  the  sermon,  some,  talked  about  crops 
with  the  farmers,  and  those  around  Bradley 
dipped  into  the  political  situation  guardedly. 

While  he  was  talking  to  some  of  the  town  peo 
ple,  he  saw  Nettie  come  up  and  join  a  young  man 
at  the  door  whom  he  had  recognized  as  the  tenor 
in  the  choir ;  and  they  sauntered  off  together 
under  the  full-leafed  maples  —  she  in  dainty  white 


178  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

and  pink,  he  in  a  miraculously  modish  suit  of 
gray,  a  rose  in  his  lapel.  Bradley  looked  after 
them  without  special  wonder.  It  was  only  as  he 
went  back  to  his  room  that  he  began  to  see  how 
fully  Nettie  had  outgrown  her  passion  for  him. 

He  met  her  the  next  day  as  he  was  going  home 
from  the  office. 

"Hello,  Bradley,"  she  said,  without  blushing, 
though  her  eyes  wavered  before  his. 

He  held  out  his  hand  with  a  frank  smile. 
"  Hello,  Nettie,  which  way  are  you  going  ?  " 

"Going  home  now,  been  up  to  the  grocery. 
Want  to  go  "long?" 

"  I  don't  mind.     How  are  you,  anyway  ? " 

"Oh,  I'm  all  right.  Say!  that  beard  of  yours 
makes  you  look  as  funny  as  old  fun." 

"Does  it?"  he  said. 

"  You  bet !  It  makes  you  look  old  enough  to 
go  to  Congress.  Say !  heard  from  Radbourn 
lately?"  Bradley  shook  his  head.  "Well,  I 
haven't,  but  Lily  has.  He's  writing  —  writing 
for  the  newspapers,  she  said." 

"Is  that  so?     I  haven't  heard  it." 

"  E-huh  !  Say,  do  you  know  Lily's  all  bent  on 
him  yet!  Funny,  ain't  it?  I  ain't  that  way,  am 
I  ? "  she  ended,  with  her  customary  audacity. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  179 

"No,  it's  out  o'  sight,  out  o'  mind  with  you," 
he  replied,  with  equal  frankness. 

"Oh,    not    quite    so    bad    as    that.     Ain't    yeh 
comin'  in  ? "     They  were  at  the  gate. 

"  Guess    not.       You    remember    your   father's 
command  ;  I  must  never  darken  his  door." 

She    laughed    heartily.       "  I    guess    that    don't 
count  now." 

"Don't  it?     Well,  some  other  time  then." 

"All  right,  but  gimme  that  basket.     Goin'  to 
lug  that  off  with  you  ?  " 


180  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 


XVI. 

NOMINATION. 

ON  the  Monday  evening  following  Bradley's 
return,  there  was  quite  a  gathering  at  Robie's 
along  about  sundown.  Colonel  Peavy  and  Judge 
Brown  came  down  together,  and  Ridings  and 
Deering  were  there  also,  seated  comfortably  under 
the  awning,  in  mild  discussion  with  Robie,  who 
had  taken  the  side  of  free  trade,  to  be  contrary,  as 
Deering  said. 

"No,  sir;  I  take  that  side  for  it's  right." 
There  was  something  sincere  in  his  reply,  and 
Ridings  stared. 

"How  long  since  ?  " 

"About  a  week." 

"What's  got  into  yeh,  anyhow?" 

"A  little  horse  sense,"  said  Robie.  "I've  been 
a  readin'  the  other  side  ;  an'  if  a  few  more  of  yeh'd 
do  the  same,  you'd  lose  some  of  your  damn  pig 
headed  nonsense."  The  Democrats  cheered^  but 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  181 

the  Republicans  stared  at  Robie,  as  if  he  had  sud 
denly  become  insane. 

"  Well,  I'll  be  dinged  !  "  said  Smith,  his  brother- 
in-law.  "I'd  like  to  know  what  you'd  been  a 
readin'  to  make  a  blazin'  old  copperhead  of  you." 

Robie  held  up  two  or  three  tracts.  The  Judge 
took  them,  looked  them  over,  and  read  the  titles 
out  loud  to  the  wondering  crowd. 

"'The  Power  of  Money  to  Oppress.'  'Free 
Trade  Philosophy.'  'The  Money  Question.'  'The 
Right  to  the  Use  of  the  Earth/  by  Herbert 
Spencer.  '  Land  and  Labor  Library.'  'Progress 
and  Poverty,'  by  Henry  George." 

"  Oh,  so  you've  got  hold  of  Spencer  and  George, 
have  you  ?  "  said  the  Judge. 

"No;  they've  got  hold  'f  me." 

"  Spencer  /"  said  Smith,  in  vast  disgust.  "What 
the  hell  has  he  to  do  with  it  ? "  The  rest  sat  in 
silence.  The  occasion  was  too  momentous  for 
jokes. 

"Where'd  you  get  hold  o'  these?"  said  the 
Judge,  fingering  the  leaves. 

"  Radbourn  sent  'em  out." 

"  I'll  bet  yeh  !  If  there  was  a  rank,  rotten  book 
anywhere  on  God's  green  footstool,  that  feller'd 
have  it,"  said  Smith. 

The   Judge   ruminated:    "Well,    if   that's   the 


182  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

effect,  guess  I'll  circulate  a  few  copies  'mong  the 
young  Republicans  of  the  county.  Gentlemen, 
this  is  our  year." 

"  You've   been   a   sayin'    that   for   ten    years, 
Judge,"  said  Ridings. 

"And  it's  been  a  comin'  all  the  time,  gentle 
men.  I  tell  you,  I've  had  my  ear  to  the  ground, 
and  there's  something  moving.  The  river  is  shift 
ing  its  bed.  Look  out  for  a  flood.  I'm  going  to 
make  an  entirely  new  move  this  fall ;  I'm  going 
to  put  up  a  man  for  legislature  that'll  sweep  the 
county;  and  you'll  all  vote  for 'im,  too.  He's 
young,  he's  got  brains,  he's  an  orator,  and  he  can't 
be  bought." 

Robie  brought  his  fist  down  on  the  counter  in 
an  excitement  such  as  he  had  never  before  mani 
fested.  "  Brad  Talcott !  We'll  elect  him  sure  as 
hell!" 

Amos  hastened  to  put  in  a  word.  "  Brad's  a 
Republican." 

"He's  a  Free  Trade  Republican,"  said  the 
Judge,  quietly. 

"  How  do  yeh  know  ? " 

"  Oh,  I  know.  Haven't  I  been  a  workin*  'im 
for  these  last  two  years  ?  Did  you  expect  a  man 
to  live  with  me  and  not  become  inoculated  with 
the  Simon-pure  Jefferson  ian  Democracy?" 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  183 

"I  don't  believe  it,"  Amos  replied;  "and  I 
won't  till  I  hear  him  say  so  himself.  I  want  to 
see  him  go  to  Des  Moines,  but  I  want  to  see  him 
go  as  a  Republican." 

"Well,  you  attend  the  Independent  convention 
next  week,  and  you'll  hear  something  that'll  set 
you  thinking.  Your  Grange  is  losing  force.  You 
failed  to  elect  your  candidate  last  year.  Now,  if 
we  put  up  a  man  who  is  a  farmer  and  a  clean 
man — a  man  that  can  sweep  the  county  and 
carry  Rock  River  —  why  not  join  in  and  elect 
him  ? " 

The  railroad  interest  was  the  great  opposing 
factor ;  and  the  Judge,  who  was  a  great  politician, 
had  calculated  upon  a  fusion  of  the  farmer  Repub 
licans  and  the  Democrats.  He  was  really  the 
ablest  man  in  that  part  of  the  State,  and  could 
wield  the  Democratic  party  like  a  pistol.  He 
succeeded  in  getting  Amos,  Councill,  Jennings, 
and  a  few  other  leading  grangers  to  sign  his  call 
for  a  people's  convention  to  nominate  county  offi 
cers  and  the  member  of  the  legislature.  It  really 
amounted  to  a  union  of  the  independent  Repub 
licans  and  the  young  Democrats. 

The  old  liners,  however,  were  there,  and  set 
out  from  the  first  to  control  the  convention,  as 
was  shown  in  the  opening  words  of  the  chairman, 
13 


1S4  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

old  man  Colwell,  whom  the  Judge  had  kindly 
allowed  in  the  chair,  in  order  that  he  might  have 
a  chance  to  speak  on  the  floor. 

"This  is  a  great  day  for  us,"  said  the  chairman. 
"We've  waited  a  long  time  for  the  people  to  see 
that  Republican  rings  were  sapping  the  founda 
tions  of  political  honesty,  but  they  see  it  now. 
This  crowded  convention,  fellow-citizens,  shows 
that  the  deathless  principles  of  Jacksonian  Dem 
ocracy  still  slumber  under  the  ashes  of  defeat." 

He  went  on  in  this  strain,  calmly  taking  to 
himself  and  the  other  old  moss-backs  (as  young 
Mason  contemptuously  called  them)  all  the  credit 
of  the  meeting,  and  bespeaking,  at  the  same  time, 
all  the  offices. 

Following  this  intimation,  Colonel  Peavy  pre 
sented  a  slate,  wherein  all  the  leading  places  on 
the  ticket  had  been  given  "to  the  men  who  stood 
so  long  for  the  principles  of  Jackson  and  Jeffer 
son.  It  was  fitting  that  these  men  should  be 
honored  for  their  heroic  waiting  outside  the  gates 
of  emolument." 

Young  Mason  was  on  his  feet  in  an  instant. 
"Mr.  Chairman,"  he  said,  penetratingly. 

"Mr.  Mason." 

"While  I  appreciate,  sir,  the  fortitude,  the 
patience,  of  the  men  who  have  been  waiting  out- 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  185 

side  the  gates  of  emolument  so  long,  I  want  to 
say  distinctly,  that  if  that  slate  is  not  broken, 
we'll  all  wait  outside  the  gates  of  emolument 
twenty  years  longer.  But  I  want  to  say  further, 
Mr.  Chairman,  that  the  strength  of  this  new 
movement  is  in  its  freedom  from  spoils-seeking ; 
is  in  its  independence  from  the  old  party  lines. 
Its  strength  is  in  its  appeal  to  the  farmer,  in 
its  support  of  his  war  against  unjust  tariff  and 
against  railway  domination.  Its  strength  also  is 
in  its  appeal  to  the  young  men  of  this  county, 
sir." 

Applause  showed  that  the  young  orator  had  his 
audience  with  him.  He  was  a  small  man,  but  his 
voice  was  magnificent,  and  his  oratory ^  powerful, 
sdf-contained,  full  of  telling  points. 

"If  we  win,  gentlemen  of  this  convention,"  he 
said,  turning,  "  we  must  put  at  the  head  of  this 
movement  a  man  who  is  absolutely  incorrupti 
ble —  a  man  who  can  command  the  granger  vote, 
the  temperance  vote,  the  young  man's  vote,  and 
the  Independent  vote.  That  man  " — 

"Mr.  Chairman,"  snarled  Colonel  Peavy,  rising 
with  impressive  dignity  and  drawing  his  coat 
around  him  with  ominous  deliberation. 

"Colonel  Peavy,"  acknowledged  the  chairman. 

"Mr.    Chairman,"    shouted    young    Mason,    "I 


186  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

have  the  floor.  I  deny  the  right  of  your  recogni 
tion  of  another  member  while  I'm  speaking." 

"  Mr.  Chairman,  I  rise  to  a  point  of  information," 
said  the  Colonel. 

"  State  your  point,  Colonel." 

"  I  would  like  to  ask  this  young  gentleman  who 
holds  the  floor  how  many  votes  he  has  cast  in  his 
whole  life." 

Young  Mason  colored  with  anger,  but  his  voice 
was  cool  and  decisive.  "  For  the  gentleman's 
information,  Mr.  Chairman,  I  will  say  that  I  have 
voted  once,  but  that  vote  entitles  me  to  stand 
here  as  a  delegate,  and  I  have  the  floor." 

The  delegates  were  mainly  with  young  Mason, 
and  the  Colonel  sat  down  grimly  in  the  midst  of 
the  Old  Guard.  Milton  and  Bradley,  sitting  to 
gether,  rejoiced  in  the  glorious  attitude  of  the  young 
champion,  who  went  on — 

"  I  say,  Mr.  Chairman  and  gentlemen,  that  we 
cannot  win  this  election  on  old  party  lines.  I'm 
a  Democrat."  (Applause.)  "  But  we  are  not 
strong  enough  as  a  party  in  this  district  to  elect, 
and  I'm  willing  to  work  with  the  Independents. 
There  is  just  one  man  who  can  be  elected  from 
this  convention.  He  is  a  young  man ;  he  is 
sound  on  the  tariff;  he  is  an  orator;  he  can 
sweep  the  county.  I  present,  as  nominee  for  our 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  187 

next  representative,  Bradley  Talcott,  of  Rock 
River." 

Bradley  sat  still,  stunned  by  the  applause  which 
burst  forth  at  the  mention  of  his  name.  Brown 
had  prepared  him  for  the  presentation  of  his 
name,  but  he  had  not  dared  to  hope  that  any 
considerable  number  of  delegates  would  support 
him. 

Judge  Brown  rose  to  his  feet.  "  I  second  the 
nomination,  Mr.  Chairman.  I  am  a  Democrat  — 
an  old  Democrat,  but  I'm  damned  if  I'm  a  moss- 
back.  I  don'  allow  any  young  man  to  get  ahead 
of  me  on  radicalism.  I  stand  for  progress ;  and 
because  I  know  Bradley  Talcott  stands  for  prog 
ress,  I  second  his  nomination.  His  canvass  will 
be  an  honor  to  himself,  and  a  historical  event  in 
this  county." 

Amos  Ridings  arose.  "  Mr.  Chairman,  I  second 
that  nomination  as  a  Granger-Republican.  I  sec 
ond  it  because  I  know  Brad  Talcott  can't  be 
bought,  and  because  I  know  he's  honest  in  his 
convictions.  I'll  stand  by  him  as  long  as  he 
stands  by  principle." 

This  practically  brought  to  Bradley's  support 
the  winning  force,  for  Amos  was  a  power  in  the 
county.  Somebody  called  for  Milton  Jennings, 
and  after  some  hesitation  he  got  upon  his  feet. 


188  A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

"Mr.  Chairman,  I'm  not  a  delegate  to  this 
convention,  and  so  it  isn't  my  place  to  speak  here; 
but  I  want  to  say  that  if  I  was,  I  should  second 
this  nomination.  It's  a  complete  surprise  to  me 
to  have  him  nominated.  If  I  had  known  of  it 
before,  I  would  have  been  working  for  him  all 
along.  I'm  pledged  in  another  direction  ;  but  if 
I  could  honorably  withdraw  my  support  from 
the  regular  nominee,  I  would  do  everything  I 
could  to  elect  my  old  classmate  and  esteemed 
colleague." 

With  this  boom,  the  vote  was  wildly  enthusi 
astic.  The  chairman  pronounced  it  unanimous. 

"Give  us  a  speech  !"  shouted  the  crowd. 

Young  Mason  leaped  up,  a  sardonic  gleam  in 
his  eye.  "Mr.  Chairman,  I  move  that  Colonel 
Peavy  and  Amos  Ridings  escort  the  nominee  to 
the  platform." 

The  motion  was  put  and  carried  amid  laughter. 
As  they  dragged  Bradley  out  of  his  chair  and 
pushed  him  up  the  aisle,  everybody  laughed  and 
cheered.  William  Councill  kicked  the  Colonel  as 
he  went  past  and  Robie  hit  him  a  sounding  slap 
between  the  shoulders.  The  Colonel  bore  it  all 
with  astonishing  good  nature.  As  they  reached 
the  platform,  young  Mason  stepped  into  the  aisle- 
and  shouted : 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  189 

"Three    cheers    for    the    Honorable    Bradley 
Talcott!" 

With  the  roar  of  these  cheers  in  his  ears,  Brad 
ley  turned  and  faced  his  fellow-citizens.  His 
knees  shook,  and  his  voice  was  so  weak  he  could 
hardly  be  heard. 

"Fellow-citizens,    do    you    know    what    you're 
doing  ? "  he  said,  in  a  curiously  colloquial  tone. 

"You  bet  we  do!"  roared  the  crowd.  "What 
d'ye  think  we've  done?" 

"You've  nominated  a  man  for  your  legislature 
who  hasn't  got  a  dollar  in  the  world." 

"  So  much  the  better !  The  campaign  '11  be 
honest !  "  shouted  young  Mason. 

Bradley's  throat  was  too  full  to  speak,  and  his 
head  whirled.  "I  can't  make  a  speech  n'ow,  gen 
tlemen  ;  I  am  all  out  o'  breath.  All  I  can  say  is, 
I'm  very  thankful  to  have  such  friends,  and  I'll 
try  to  do  my  duty  in  the  campaign,  and  in  the 
legislature,  if  I'm  elected." 

The  delegates  swarmed  about  him  to  shake  his 
hand  and  promise  him  their  support.  Bradley, 
dazed  by  the  suddenness  of  it,  could  only  smile 
and  grip  each  man's  hand.  The  Judge  was  jubi 
lant.  Had  Bradley  been  his  son,  he  couldn't  have 
felt  more  sincerely  pleased. 

"We'll  see  such  a  campaign   this  fall  as  this 


190  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

county  never  had,"  he  said  to  everybody;  "a 
campaign  with  a  principle;  a  campaign  that  will 
be  educational." 

Bradley  had  now  a  greater  work  before  him 
than  he  had  ever  undertaken  before.  He  had 
now  to  go  to  his  old  friends  and  neighbors  in  a 
new  light,  practically  as  a  Democrat.  He  had 
to  face  audiences  mainly  hostile  to  his  ideas,  and 
defend  opinions  which  he  knew  not  only  cut 
athwart  the  judgment  of  the  farmers  of  the  county, 
but  squarely  across  their  prejudices. 

But  he  had  something  irresistible  on  his  side; 
he  was  debating  a  principle.  He  was  widening 
the  discussion,  and  he  made  men  feel  that.  He 
rose  above  local  factions  and  local  questions  to  the 
discussion  of  the  principles  of  justice  and  freedom. 
He  voiced  this  in  his  speech  of  acceptance  in  the 
Opera  House  the  next  day.  The  house  was 
packed  to  its  anteroom  with  people  from  every 
part  of  the  county.  A  curious  feeling  of  expect 
ancy  was  abroad.  Men  seemed  to  feel  instinct 
ively  that  this  was  the  beginning  of  a  change  in 
the  thought  of  Rock  River.  Everybody  remarked 
on  the  change  in  Bradley,  and  his  beard  made 
him  look  so  much  older. 

Judge  Brown  and  Dr.  Carver  sat  on  the  stage 
with  the  speakers,  young  Mason  and  Bradley. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  191 

The  Judge  was  very  dignified,  but  there  was  an 
exultant  strut  in  his  walk  and  a  special  deliber 
ation  in  his  voice  which  proclaimed  his  pride  in 
his  junior  partner.  He  alluded,  in  his  dry,  nasal 
way,  to  the  pleasure  it  gave  him  to  inaugurate 
the  new  era  in  politics  in  Rock  River.  "The 
liquor  question  I  regard  as  settled  in  this  State," 
he  said.  "  And  now  the  discussion  of  the  tariff 
has  free  sailing.  But  you  don't  want  to  hear  us 
old  fellows,  with  our  prejudices;  you  want  to  hear 
our  young  leaders,  with  their  principles." 

He  introduced  young  Mason,  who  made  one  of 
his  audacious  speeches.  "  Death  is  a  great  friend 
of  youth  and  progress,"  he  said.  "The  old  men 
die,  off,  thank  God  !  and  give  young  men  and 
new  principles  a  chance.  I  tell  you,  friends  and 
neighbors,  the  Democratic  party  is  being  born 
again — it  must  be  born  again,  in  order  to  be 
worth  saving." 

When  Bradley  stepped  forward,  he  was  very 
pale. 

"Friends  and  fellow-citizens,"  he  began,  after 
the  applause  had  ended,  "I  can't  find  words  to 
express  my  feeling  for  the  great  honor  you  have 
done  me.  I  thank  the  citizens  of  Rock  River  for 
their  aid,  but  I  want  to  say  —  I'm  going  to  run 
this  campaign  in  the  farmers'  interest,  because 


192  A    SPOIL   OF  OFFICE, 

the  interests  of  this  county  and  of  this  State  are 
agricultural,  and  whatever  hurts  the  farmer  hurts 
every  other  man  in  the  State.  There  is  no  war 
between  the  town  and  the  country.  The  war  is 
between  the  people  and  the  monopolist  wherever 
he  is,  whether  he  is  in  the  country  or  in  the  town. 
It  is  not  true  that  the  interests  of  the  town  dweller 
and  of  the  farmer  are  necessarily  antagonistic ; 
the  cause  of  the  people  is  the  same  everywhere. 
It's  like  the  condition  of  affairs  between  England 
and  Ireland.  People  say  that  Ireland  is  fighting 
England  —  fighting  the  English  people,  but  that 
is  not  the  fact.  The  antagonism  is  between  the 
Irish  people  and  the  English  landlord.  So  the 
fight  in  America  is  the  people  against  the  special 
privileges  enjoyed  by  a  few.  It's  because  these 
few  generally  live  in  towns  that  we  seem  to  be 
fighting  the  towns. 

"As  the  Judge  said,  we've  settled  the  liquor 
question  in  this  State ;  it  won't  come  up  again 
unless  office  seekers  drag  it  up.  It  has  been  our 
State  issue  —  that  and  the  railroads;  and  now 
that  is  settled,  we  can  turn  our  attention  to  the 
finishing  up  of  the  railway  problem  and  to  the 
discussion  of  the  tariff." 

"  And  the  money  !"  shouted  some  one;  "abol 
ish  the  national  banks  !  " 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  193 

Bradley  hesitated  a  little.  "  No,  we  can't  do 
that,  but  we  can  destroy  any  special  privilege  they 
hold.  But  the  first  thing  that  stares  us  in  the 
face  is  the  war  tariff  that  is  eating  us  up.  I'm 
going  to  state  just  what  I  think  in  this  campaign, 
and  you  can  vote  for  me  or  not.  It  is  sheer 
robbery  to  continue  a  tariff  that  was  laid  at  a  time 
when  we  needed  enormous  revenue.  See  the 
surplus  piling  up  in  the  public  vault.  You  say 
it's  better  to  have  a  surplus  than  a  deficit.  Yes, 
but  I'd  rather  have  the  surplus  in  the  pockets  of 
the  people.  This  taxing  the  people  to  death,  in 
order  to  have  a  surplus  to  expend  in  senseless 
appropriations,  is  poor  policy." 

In  this  strain  his  whole  speech  ran,  and  it  had 
an  electrical  effect.  They  cheered  him  tremen 
dously,  and  the  meeting  broke  up,  and  discussion 
burst  out  all  over  the  hall  with  appalling  fury, 
and  continued  each  day  thereafter.  The  railroad 
question  and  the  tariff  question  began  right  there 
to  divide  the  county  into  two  camps.  The  young 
leader  carried  the  same  disturbing  influence  into 
every  township  in  which  he  spoke,  and  the  whole 
county  became  a  debating  school.  It  took  a  posi 
tion  far  ahead  of  the  other  counties  of  the  State 
in  the  questions. 

Men  stopped  each  other,  and  talked  from  plow 


194  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

to  plow  across  the  line  fence.  They  met  in  the 
road  upon  dusty  loads  of  wheat,  and  sat  hours  at 
a  time  under  the  burning  August  sun  to  discuss 
the  matter  of  railroad  commissions,  and  the  fixing 
of  rates,  and  the  question  or  reducing  the  surplus 
in  the  treasury. 

The  old  greenbackers  came  out  of  their  tempo 
rary  retirement,  and  helped  Bradley's  cause  simply 
because  he  was  young  and  a  dissenter.  They 
were  a  power,  for  most  of  them  were  deeply  read 
on  the  tariff  and  on  the  railroad  problem  ;  in  fact, 
were  all  round  radicals  and  fluent  speakers. 

Judge  Brown  kept  out  of  it.  "I  don't  want  to 
seem  too  prominent  in  this  campaign,"  he  said  to 
Colonel  Peavey.  "We  old  Mohawks  are  a  dam 
age  to  any  man's  campaign  just  now.  The  time 
is  coming,  Colonel,  when  we'll  help,  but  not  now. 
We've  set  the  mischief  afoot;  now  let  the  young 
fellows  and  the  farmers  do  the  rest  of  it.  Be 
sides,  my  young  man  here  is  quite  able  to  look 
out  for  himself.  All  that  scares  me  is  he'll  get 
too  radical,  even  for  the  Democracy,  one  of  these 
days.  If  he  does,  all  is  we  11  have  to  build  a 
party  up  to  his  principle,  for  he'll  be  right,  Colo 
nel;  there's  no  two  ways  about  that." 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  105 


XVII. 

ELECTION. 

THE  interest  of  the  election  was  very  great ; 
and  as  the  vote  of  Rock  River  practically  settled 
the  contest,  the  centre  of  interest  was  the  Court 
House,  which  was  crowded  to  suffocation  on 
election  night.  There  was  a  continual  jam  and 
a  continual  change.  Crowds  stood  around  the 
doorway,  or  moved  up  and  down  the  sidewalk. 
Crowds  were  constantly  running  up  and  down  the 
stairway,  and  crowding  in  and  out  the  dingy, 
dimly  lighted  court-room,  which  was  roaring  with 
voices,  blue  with  smoke,  and  foul  as  a  dungeon  — 
with  tobacco  and  vitiated  breaths. 

All  the  men  of  the  town  seemed  to  be  pres 
ent,  from  old  man  Dickey,  the  chicken  thief  and 
fisherman,  to  cold,  aristocratic  R.  F.  Russell,  the 
banker.  Rowdyish  boys  pushed  and  banged  and 
howled,  playing  at  hide-and-seek  among  the  legs  of 


196  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

the  men,  who  filled  every  foot  of  standing  space, 
or  were  perched  on  the  railings  or  tables  near  the 
Judge's  bench,  from  which  the  returns  were  being 
called.  The  kerosene  lamp  shed  a  dim  light, 
through  the  smoke.  There  was  no  fire,  and  the 
excited  partisans  kept  their  hats  and  coats  on, 
and  warmed  themselves  by  wild  gestures  and 
stamping. 

Occasionally  a  boy's  shrill  yell  or  whistle,  or 
some  excited  Democrat's  calling,  "It's  a  whack! 
I'll  take  yeh  I . "  rose  above  the  clamor.  Upon 
the  benches  piled  up  along  the  wall,  to  leave  the 
middle  space  free,  groups  of  the  less  demonstra 
tive  citizens  of  both  parties  sat  discussing  the 
chances  of  the  different  candidates.  Bradley  was 
not  there,  but  young  Mason  and  Milton  were  con 
sidered  his  representatives,  and  were  surrounded 
by  a  constant  crowd  of  sympathizers.  It  was 
about  nine  o'clock  at  night  before  the  decisive 
returns  began  to  come  in. 

Occasionally  the  sound  of  furious  pounding  was 
heard,  and  a  momentary  lull  was  enforced  while 
the  clerk  read  some  telegraphic  message  or  report 
of  a  neighboring  town.  While  he  stood  upon  the 
Judge's  bench,  at  about  nine  o'clock,  the  crowd, 
aware  in  some  mysterious  way  of  the  arrival  of 
decisive  news,  made  a  wild  surge  toward  the  clerk, 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  197 

and  shouted  for  silence,  while  he  announced  in  a 
high  nasal  key:  "Rock  River  gives  a  hundred 
and  ninety-one  for  Kimball,  two  hundred  and 
twenty-five  for  Talcott."  At  this  a  wild  cheer 
broke  forth,  led  by  Milton  and  young  Mason. 

"That  means  victory!"  said  Milton. 

"Don't  be  too  sure  of  it !    Wait  for  Cedarville." 

The  reading  went  on,  with  occasional  yells  from 
either  the  Democrats  or  Republicans,  according 
to  the  special  quality  of  the  report,  but  it  was 
plain  that  the  most  interest  was  centered  in  the 
contest  for  representative. 

As  the  evening  wore  on,  messengers  clattered 
up  on  horseback  from  other  towns  of  the  county, 
and  amid  yells  and  cheers  were  hustled  up  the 
stairway,  through  the  crowd  to  the  clerk,  carry 
ing  in  their  hands  envelopes  filled  with  election 
returns.  These  returns  from  the  townships  were 
almost  entirely  in  Bradley's  favor,  but  Cedarville 
was  the  decisive  vote.  Messengers  from  the  little 
telegraph  station  dashed  to  and  fro,  and  the  excite 
ment  was  fanned  into  greater  fury  by  the  accounts 
of  Democratic  gains  from  other  counties  and  other 
States.  "It  is  a  political  landslide,"  exclaimed 
Mason.  "The  Democrats  are  in  it  this  time." 

At  length  there  rose  the  cry  of  "  Cedarville ! 
Cedarville! "  and  a  messenger  bearing  a  telegraph 


198  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

blank  was  rushed  through  to  the  reading-desk, 
where  his  message  was  snatched  by  the  clerk. 
Again  there  was  a  wild  surge  toward  the  desk, 
and  a  silence,  broken  only  by  derisive  cheers  from 
the  boys,  while  the  clerk  glanced  over  it. 

"Cedarville  gives  seventy  votes  for  Kimball, 
and  a  hundred  and  ten  for  Talcott." 

The  Independents  shouted  themselves  hoarse, 
and  flung  their  caps  in  the  air.  Talcott  had 
carried  both  of  the  towns  of  the  county ;  he  was 
sure  of  the  farmers.  The  boys  howled  like  sav 
ages,  and  tripped  each  other  over  the  railings  and 
seats,  boxed  hats,  punched  the  men  in  the  back, 
and  hid  around  their  legs;  while  the  clerk  went 
on  with  his  reading,  at  more  and  more  frequent 
intervals,  of  reports  from  other  States  and  dis 
tricts  of  the  congressional  field.  The  old-line 
Democrats  were  delirious  with  joy.  The  promised 
land  was  in  sight. 

It  was  about  half  past  twelve  o'clock  when 
Colonel  Russell  conceded  Bradley's  election,  and 
two  stout  men  toiled  up  the  stairs,  bringing  his 
forfeit  of  two  barrels  of  apples.  Amid  wilds  yells 
from  the  crowd,  they  threw  the  barrels  to  the 
floor,  where  they  burst,  and  sent  Northern  Spys 
rolling  in  every  direction. 

Then   came  a  wilder  roar  and   scramble,    that 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  199 

outdid  everything  that  had  gone  before,  and  a 
surging  mass  of  struggling  men  and  boys  covered 
the  apples.  They  threw  themselves  upon  each 
other's  backs.  They  clawed  like  wild-cats,  barked 
like  wolves.  They  kicked  each  other  out  of  the 
way,  and  scratched  and  mauled  each  other,  crush 
ing  hats,  tearing  coats,  bruising  shins.  As  fast 
as  one  man  rilled  his  hands  or  arms  or  pockets, 
the  others  set  upon  him,  struck  them  from  his 
arm,  snatched  them  from  his  hands,  tore  them 
from  his  pockets,  or  tripped  him  headlong  to  the 
floor,  where  he  rolled  in  the  filthy  sawdust,  under 
the  feet  of  the  crazy  mob. 

The  wrestle  of  starving  wild  hogs  for  corn  or 
potatoes  could  not  have  been  more  tumultuous  or 
ear-splitting  than  this  ferocious,  jovial  scramble. 
It  ceased  only  when  the  last  apple  was  secured, 
so  that  none  could  snatch  it  away.  Then  began 
the  fusilade  of  cores  and  parings.  Shining  stove 
pipe  hats  were  choice  game,  and  to  throw  a  core 
clean  through  a  silk  hat  was  a  distinction  which 
everybody  seemed  to  covet.  In  five  minutes  not 
a  tall  hat  was  to  be  seen.  Colonel  Peavy  wrapped 
his  handkerchief  around  his,  thus  drawing  upon 
himself  the  attack  of  the  entire  crowd,  and  he 
was  forced  to  retreat. 

Then  they  threw  at  faces  and  bald  heads.  The 
14 


200  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

uproar  redoubled.  No  one  was  drunk,  no  one 
was  mad ;  but  the  scene  was  furious  with  mirth. 
It  was  contagious.  Word  spread  outside,  and  the 
whole  male  population  of  the  town  jammed  into 
the  stairway,  and  struggled  furiously  to  reach  the 
court-room,  where  the  fun  was  going  on.  A 
stranger  would  have  imagined  it  the  loosing  of 
the  hordes  of  hell. 

In  the  streets  of  the  town,  the  boys,  without 
the  slightest  care  about  who  was  elected,  were 
stealing  kerosene  barrels  and  dry-goods  boxes,  in 
order  to  keep  the  bonfire  going.  When  they 
heard  of  the  free  apples  which  they  had  missed 
by  their  zeal  in  bonfiring,  a  bitterness  came  upon 
them,  and  they  came  together  and  tried  to  organ 
ize  a  committee  to  go  down  and  see  Judge  Brown 
and  state  their  grievance. 

At  last  one  desperate  young  fellow  took  the 
lead,  and  the  rest  marched  after.  He  moved  off 
down  the  street,  shouting  through  his  closed  lips 
"Bum,  bum,  bum,  bum,  bum!"  The  rest  took 
up  the  drum-like  cry,  and  marched  after  him  two 
and  two.  They  made  straight  toward  Judge 
Brown's  office,  where  they  knew  Bradley  was. 
They  halted  and  raised  a  great  shout. 

"Three  cheers  for  the  Honorable  Brad,"  and 
gave  them  wildly. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  201 

This  brought  the  Judge  out ;  and  when  they 
saw  him,  they  yelled  in  lugubrious  tones,  as  if 
they  were  starving,  "Apples  !  apples!" 

The  Judge  shouted  down,  "  All  right,  boys,  I'll 
send  Robie  up.  He'll  roll  out  all  the  apples  you 
want."  The  boys  gave  another  cheer,  and  left. 

Bradley  sat  there  in  the  Judge's  office  in  a  sort 
of  daze.  He  could  not  say  a  word.  His  thought 
was  not  clear.  He  was  not  at  all  anxious. 
Somehow  he  could  not  feel  that  it  was  his  fate 
that  was  being  decided.  On  the  contrary,  it 
seemed  to  be  some  other  person.  He  was  not 
excited ;  he  was  only  puzzled  and  wondering. 

At  last  the  crowd  was  heard  coming  from  the 
Court  House.  Wild  cheers  sounded  faintly  far 
up  the  street.  The  sound  of  a  band  was  heard, 
and  the  marching  of  feet,  rhythmic  on  the  side 
walks.  There  came  the  sound  of  rapid  footsteps, 
and  so  familiar  was  Bradley  with  the  sidewalk 
that  he  knew  exactly  where  the  runners  were  by 
the  different  note  given  out  by  each  section  of 
planking.  They  were  crossing  the  street.  Now 
they  came  across  the  warped  and  clattering  length 
before  the  butcher  shop.  Then  over  the  crisp, 
solid  planking  before  Robie's.  Then  came  a  rush 
up  the  stairway,  and  Milton  and  young  Mason 
burst  into  the  room. 


202  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

"Hurrah,  we've  carried  you  through!  You're 
elected,  sure  as  guns  !  " 

"Three  cheers  for  Democracy  and  progress," 
shouted  the  Judge,  in  high  excitement,  from  the 
open  windows.  They  were  given  with  tremend 
ous  vigor  by  the  crowd  from  below  and  the  band 

struck  up  "Hail  Columbia." 

****** 

It  was  two  o'clock  when  Bradley  and  the  Judge 
got  away  from  the  crowd  and  went  home  to  bed. 
They  found  Mrs.  Brown  sitting  up.  With  the 
customary  thoughtlessness  of  men,  neither  of 
them  had  taken  her  anxiety  into  account. 

"Well,  Mrs.  Brown,  are  you  up  ?  " 

"Yes,  Mr.  Brown;  I  wanted  to  hear  the  news. 
You  didn't  suppose  I  could  go  to  bed  without  it," 
she  replied  calmly,  though  she  was  trembling  with 
eagerness. 

"Well,  we're  elected,  Mrs.  Brown,"  said  the 
Judge  proudly. 

She  came  up  to  Bradley  timidly,  a  longing 
mixed  with  pride  expressed  in  her  face.  Bradley 
took  her  in  his  arms,  and  laid  her  cheek  on  his 
shoulder.  She  stood  before  him  like  a  mother 
now.  He  felt  her  pride  in  him,  and  she  had 
grown  very  dear  to  him. 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  203 


XVIII. 

"DON'T  BLOW  OUT  THE  GAS." 

DES  MOINES  appeared  to  Bradley  to  be  very 
great  and  very  noisy.  It  was  the  largest  city  he 
had  ever  seen.  He  was  born  in  Eastern  Wiscon 
sin  on  a  farm,  and  his  early  life  had  been  spent 
far  from  any  populous  centre ;  very  largely,  in 
deed,  in  the  timber-lands.  He  had  been  in 
Lacrosse,  that  is  to  say,  he  changed  cars  there, 
and  Rock  River  and  Iowa  City  were  the  only 
towns  he  had  ever  lived  in. 

He  had  the  preconception  that  Des  Moines  was 
a  fine  city,  but  its  streets  seemed  endless  to  him 
that  cold,  clear  night  that  he  got  off  the  train  and 
walked  up  the  sidewalk.  He  had  been  told  to  go 
right  to  the  Windom  House,  because  there  was 
the  legislative  headquarters.  He  walked,  carry 
ing  his  valise  in  his  hand,  and  looking  furtively 
about  him.  He  knew  he  ought  not  to  do  so, 


204  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

but  the  life  about  him  and  the  endless  rows  of 
vast  buildings  fascinated  him  —  drew  his  attention 
constantly. 

The  portico  of  the  hotel  awed  him  with  its  red 
sandstone  magnificence,  and  he  moved  timidly  on 
toward  the  centre  of  the  rotunda  with  hesitating 
and  uncertain  steps.  It  seemed  to  be  the  realiza 
tion  of  his  imaginings  of  Chicago.  It  subdued 
him  into  absolute  clownishness ;  and  the  porter 
who  rushed  toward  him  and  took  his  valise  from 
his  hands,  classified  him  off-hand  as  another  one 
of  those  country  fellows  who  must  be  watched 
and  prevented  from  blowing  out  the  gas.  Brad 
ley  signed  his  name  on  the  book  without  any 
flourishes,  and  without  writing  the  "  Honorable  " 
before  his  name,  as  most  of  the  other  members 
had  done. 

"Front!"  yelled  the  clerk,  in  an  imperative 
voice.  Bradley  started,  and  then  grew  hot  over 
his  foolishness.  "  Show  this  gentleman  to  No.  30. 
Like  dinner?"  the  clerk  asked,  in  a  kindly  inter 
est.  Bradley  nodded,  suddenly  remembering  that 
in  fashionable  life  dinner  came  at  six  o'clock. 
"  All  ready  in  about  ten  minutes,"  the  clerk  said, 
looking  at  the  clock. 

Bradley  followed  the  boy  to  the  elevator.  He 
noticed  that  the  darkey  did  not  enter  with  him, 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  205 

but  ran  up  the  stairs.  He  could  see  him  rushing 
around  the  curves,  his  hands  sliding  on  the  rail 
ings.  He  met  him  at- the  door  of  the  elevator  and 
motioned  to  him  —  "This  way,  suh."  There  was 
something  in  his  tone  that  puzzled  Bradley ;  and 
as  he  walked  along  the  hall,  he  thought  of  the  soft 
carpet  under  his  feet  (it  must  have  been  two 
inches  thick)  and  of  that  tone  in  the  boy's  voice. 

A  dull  fire  of  soft  coal  was  burning  on  the 
grate,  and  the  boy  punched  it  up,  and  said, 
"'Nother  gent  jes'  left.  I  git  some  mo'  coal." 

The  room,  like  all  hotel  rooms,  was  a  desolate 
place,  notwithstanding  its  one  or  two,  elaborate 
pieces  of  furniture,  its  fine  carpet,  and  its  easy 
chair.  It  had  a  distinctly  homeless  quality.  Brad 
ley  sat  down  in  the  big  chair  before  the  fire,  and 
took  time  to  think  it  all  over.  He  was  really 
here  as  a  legislator  for  a  great  State.  The 
responsibility  and  honor  of  the  position  came 
upon  him  strongly  as  he  sat  there  alone  in  this 
great  hotel  looking  at  the  fire.  That  he,  of  all 
the  men  in  his  county,  should  have  been  selected 
for  this  office,  was  magnificent.  He  drew  a  long 
sigh,  and  said  inwardly  : 

"I'll  be  true  to  my  trust."  And  he  meant,  in 
addition,  to  be  so  dignified  and  serious  that  he 
would  not  seem  young  to  the  other  legislators. 


206  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

He  was  reading,  from  a  little  frame  on  the  wall, 
the  rules  of  the  house  when  the  boy  knocked  on 
the  door,  and  started  away  toward  the  fire  so  that 
the  boy  should  not  suspect  what  he  had  been 
doing.  He  returned  to  the  reading,  however, 
after  the  boy  had  gone  out.  He  read  "Don't 
Blow  out  the  Gas,"  without  feeling  it  an  imperti 
nence,  and  went  over  to  read  the  code  of  signals 
posted  above  the  bell  punch. 

RING  ONCE  FOR  BELL  BOY. 
RING  TWICE  FOR  ICE  WATER. 

RlNG    THREE    FOR  FlRE. 

RING  FOUR  FOR  CHAMBERMAID. 

His  mind  went  off  in  a  pursuit  of  trivial  mat 
ters  concerning  this  code.  What  would  happen 
if  he  rang  three  times  —  which  he  thought  stood 
for  alarm  of  fire.  In  imagination  he  heard  the  out 
cries  throughout  the  various  floors  and  rooms  of 
the  house.  Then  his  mind  went  back  to  the  fact 
that  the  boy  was  not  allowed  to  ride  in  the  eleva 
tor.  He  wondered  if  this  touch  of  southern  feel 
ing  would  ever  get  any  farther  north.  For  the 
first  time  in  his  life  he  had  met  the  question  of 
caste. 

He  went  down  to  supper,  as  he  called  it  him- 


A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  207 

self,  in  the  dining-room,  which  he  found  to  be  a 
very  large  and  splendid  apartment.  A  waiter  in 
a  dress  coat  (he  had  never  seen  a  live  figure  in  a 
dress  coat  before)  met  him  at  the  door,  and  with 
elaborate  authority  called  another  darkey,  in  a 
similar  dress  coat,  to  show  him  to  a  chair. 

The  second  darkey  led  his  way  down  the  pol 
ished  floor  (which  Bradley  walked  with  difficulty), 
his  coat  tails  wagging  in  a  curious  fashion,  by 
reason  of  the  action  of  his  bow  legs.  He  was 
obliged  to  take  the  uncomprehending  Bradley  by 
the  arm,  while  he  shoved  the  chair  under  him ; 
but  he  did  it  so  courteously  that  no  one  noticed 
it.  He  was  accustomed  to  give  this  silent  instruc 
tion  in  ceremonials.  Bradley  noticed  that,  not 
withstanding  the  splendor  of  his  shirt-front,  col 
lar  and  dress-coat,  his  shoes  were  badly  broken, 
though  highly,  polished. 

A  man  sat  at  the  opposite  side  of  the  table 
reading  a  paper  over  his  coffee.  He  attracted 
Bradley's  attention  because  he  had  a  scowl  on 
his  face,  and  his  hair  was  tumbled  picturesquely 
about  his  forehead.  Even  his  brown  moustache 
contrived  to  have  an  oddly  dishevelled  look. 

They  ate  in  silence  for  some  time,  or  rather 
Bradley  did ;  the  other  man  read  and  sipped  his 
coffee,  and  continued  to  frown  and  swear  under 


208  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

his  breath.  At  length  he  burst  forth  in  a  sup 
pressed  exclamation:  "Well,  I'll  be  damned." 
When  he  looked  at  Bradley,  his  eyes  were 
friendly,  and  he  seemed  to  require  some  one 
to  talk  to. 

"These  devilish  railroads  will  own  the  country, 
body  and  breeches  yet." 

"What  are  they  up  to  now?"  said  Bradley. 

"They've  secured  Joe  Manley  as  their  attorney, 
one  of  the  best  lawyers  in  the  State.  It's  too 
cussed  bad."  He  looked  sad.  "I  can't  account 
for  it.  I  suppose  he  got  hard  up,  and  couldn't 
stand  the  pressure.  I  wonder  if  you  know  how 
these  infernal  corporations  capture  a  State!" 

"No,  but  I'd  like  to  know.  I'm  down  here  to 
fight  'em." 

"  That  so  ?     From  where  ?  " 

"  From  Rock  County.  I'm  the  representative  ; 
Talcott  is  my  name,"  Bradley  said,  seizing  an 
excuse  to  announce  himself. 

"Is  that  so!  Well,  now,  I'm  an  old  cock  in 
the  pit,  and  I  want  to  warn  you.  I've  known 
many  a  fine,  honest  fellow  to  get  involved.  Now 
I'll  tell  you  how  it's  done.  Before  you  have  been 
here  a  week,  some  of  these  railroads  will  send  for 
you,  and  tell  you  they've  heard  of  you  as  a  promi 
nent  young  lawyer  of  the  State.  Oh,  they've 


A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  209 

heard  of  you,  we've  all  heard  of  your  canvass ; 
and  as  they  are  in  need  of  an  attorney  in  your 
county,  they'd  like  very  much  to  have  you  take 
charge,  etc.,  of  any  legislation  that  may  arise 
there,  and  so  on.  There  may  not  be  a  week's 
work  during  the  year,  and  there  may  be  a  great 
deal,  etc.,  but  they  will  be  glad  to  pay  you  six 
hundred  dollars  or  eight  hundred  dollars,  if  you 
will  take  the  position. 

"Well,  we'll  suppose  you  take  it.  You  go 
back  to  Rock,  there  is  very  little  business  for  the 
railroad,  but  your  salary  comes  in  regularly.  You 
say  to  yourself  that,  in  case  any  work  comes  in 
which  is  dishonorable,  you'll  refuse  to  take  hold 
of  it.  But  that  money  comes  in  nicely.  You 
marry  on  the  expectations  of  its  continuance. 
You  get  to  depending  upon  it.  You  live  up  to  it. 
You  don't  find  anything  which  they  demand  of 
you  really  dishonest,  and  you  keep  on ;  but  really 
cases  of  the  railroad  against  the  people  do  come 
up,  and  your  sense  of  justice  isn't  so  acute  as  it 
used  to  be.  You  manage  to  argue  yourself  into 
doing  it.  If  you  don't  do  it,  somebody  else  will, 
etc.,  and  so  you  keep  on." 

After  an  impressive  pause,  during  which  the 
speaker  gazed  in  his  face,  he  finished:  "Suddenly 
the  war  of  the  corporation  against  the  people  is 


210  A   SPOIL  OF  OFFICE. 

on  us,  and  you  find  you  are  the  paid  tool  of  the 
corporation,  and  that  the  people  are  distrustful  of 
you,  and  that  you  are  practically  helpless." 

The  man  spoke  in  a  low  voice,  but  somehow 
his  words  had  the  quality  of  exciting  the  imagina 
tion.  Bradley  thrilled  at  the  picture  of  moral 
disintegration  hinted  at.  The  imaginative  tragedy 
was  brought  very  close  to  him. 

"Do  they  really  do  that?"  he  asked. 

"That's  apart  of  their  plan.  The  proof  of  it 
will  be  in  the  offer  which  they'll  make  to  you  in 
less  than  ten  days.  They're  always  on  the  look 
out  for  such  men,  especially  men  who  have  the 
confidence  of  the  farmers.  The  next  war  in  this 
State  and  in  the  nation  is  to  be  a  railway  war." 

"You  think  so.      I  think  the  tariff" 

"What  is  the  tariff,  compared  to  the  robbery 
that  makes  Gould  and  Sage  and  Vanderbilt  ?  I 
tell  you,  young  man,  the  corporations  in  this 
country  are  eating  the  life  out  of  it.  This  power 
of  three  men  to  get  together,  steal  the  privilege 
from  the  people,  and  by  their  joint  action  to  pro 
duce  a  fourth  body  (corptis],  behind  which  they 
hide  and  push  their  schemes  —  an  intangible  some 
thing  which  outlives  them  all  —  that  is  the  power 
that  is  undermining  this  government.  It's  against 
the  Constitution.  Old  Chief  Justice  Marshall  in 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  211 

his  verdict  (which  ushered  in  the  reign  of  corpo 
rations,  in  this  country)  distinctly  said  that  it 
was  based  on  usurpation,  dating  back  to  the 
Stuarts  or  the  Georges ;  and  the  hint  in  that  was, 
that  it  was  un-American  and  un-Constitutional." 

Bradley  perceived  that  he  was  in  the  presence 
of  another  reformer  like  himself.  He  wondered 
if  he  seemed  so  cranky  to  other  men.  He  was 
interested  by  the  man's  evident  thought  and  hon 
esty  of  purpose  and  by  the  sympathy  of  a  city 
man  with  a  farmer's  fight. 

"You're   with    us    in    our    fight    against    the 
railroads  ?" 

The  man  threw  one  arm  back  over  the  top  of 
his  chair  and  looked  at  Bradley  out  of  his  half- 
closed  eyes.  "  Of  course.  Only  you're  so  damned 
narrow.  Excuse  me.  You  don't  see  that  you've 
got  to  kill  every  corporation.  Every  corporation 
is  an  infringement  of  individual  rights.  When 
three  men  go  into  business  as  a  firm,  they  should 
every  one  be  liable  for  every  contract  which  they 
make.  The  creation  of  an  intangible  corporate 
personality  is  a  trick  to  evade  liability.  Make 
war  against  the  whole  system,"  he  said,  rising. 
"Don't  go  fooling  about  with  regulating  fares  and 
forming  commissions.  Declare  corporations  ille 
gal,  and  let  the  people  know  their  practices." 


212  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

They  went  down  to  the  rotunda  floor  together. 
The  electric  lights  flooded  the  brilliant  marbles 
with  a  dazzling  light.  Groups  of  men  were  gath 
ered  around  spittoons,  talking  earnestly,  gesticu 
lating  with  fists  and  elaborate  broad- hand,  free- 
arm  movements — political  gestures,  as  Bradley 
recognized. 

"These  are  your  colleagues  and  their  parasites," 
said  Bradley's  companion,  whose  name  was  Car- 
gill.  "  Know  any  of  'em  ?  " 

"No ;  I  don't  know  any  of  the  legislators." 

Cargill  led  Bradley  up  to  a  group  which  sur 
rounded  a  gigantic  old  man  who  leaned  on  a  cane 
and  gesticulated  with  his  powerful  left  hand. 

"Senator  Wood,  let  me  introduce  Hon.  Brad 
ley  Talcott,  of  Rock." 

"Ah,  glad  to  see  you,  sir.  Glad  to  see  you. 
Gentlemen,  this  is  the  young  man  who  made  that 
gallant  fight  up  in  Rock.  This  is  the  Hon.  Jones 
of  Boone,  Mr.  Talcott,  and  this  is  Sam  Wells  of 
Cerro  Gordo,  one  of  the  most  remorseless  jokers 
in  the  House.  Look  out  for  him  !  " 

After  shaking  hands  all  about,  Bradley  hastened 
to  say,  "Don't  let  me  interrupt.  Go  on,  senator. 
I  want  to  listen."  This  made  a  fine  impression 
on  the  senator,  who  loved  dearly  to  hear  the 
sound  of  his  own  voice.  He  proceeded  to  enlarge 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  213 

upon  his  plan  for  gerrymandering  the  state  —  to 
the  advantage  of  the  Democratic  party,  of  course. 

In  the  talk  which  followed,  Bradley  was  brought 
face  to  face  with  the  fact  that  these  men  were 
more  earnest  in  maintaining  the  hold  of  their  par 
ties  upon  the  offices  than  principles  of  legislation. 
They  were  not  legislators  in  any  instances;  they 
were  gamesters. 

"Now,  let  me  tell  you  something  more,"  said 
Cargill,  as  he  led  his  way  back  to  a  settee  near 
the  wall.  He  drew  up  a  chair  for  his  feet,  lighted 
his  cigar,  pulled  his  little  soft  hat  down  to  the 
bridge  of  his  nose,  put  one  thumb  behind  his 
vest,  and  began  in  a  peculiarly  sardonic  tone: 
"Now,  here  is  where  the  legislation  really  takes 
place  —  here  and  at  the  Iowa  House.  See  those 
fellows?"  He  waved  his  hand  in  a  circle  around 
the  rotunda,  now  filled  with  stalwart  men  laugh 
ing  loudly  or  talking  in  confidential,  deeply  inter 
ested  groups,  with  their  heads  close  together. 
"There  are  the  supposed  law-makers  of  the  State. 
What  do  you  think  of  them,  anyway?" 

Bradley  was  silent.  He  was  so  filled  with  new 
sensations  and  ideas  that  he  could  not  talk. 

Cargill  mused  a  little.  "  I  suppose  it  all 
appears  to  you  as  something  very  fine  and  very 
important.  Now,  don't  make  a  mistake.  The 


214  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

most  of  these  fellows  are  not  even  average  men. 
I  have  a  theory  that,  take  it  one  ten  years  with 
another,  the  legislatures  of  our  country  must  be 
necessarily  beneath  the  average,  because  the  man 
who  is  a  thinker  or  a  moralist  necessarily  repre 
sents  a  minority.  Anyhow,  these  men  support 
my  theory,  don't  they  ? " 

There  was  a  distinct  bitterness  in  his  tone  that 
made  his  words  sink  deep.  There  was  a  touch  of 
literary  grace  also  in  his  phrases,  quite  unlike 
anything  Bradley  had  ever  heard.  "You  imagine 
these  men  honest.  You  say  'they  differ  from 
me '  honestly.  But  I  know  there  is  no  question 
of  principle  in  their  action.  They  simply  say 
No.  I  first,  party  next,  and  principle  last  of  all. 
I  remember  how  awe-struck  I  was  during  my  first 
term.  Now,  don't  waste  any  nervous  energy  on 
admiring  these  men  or  standing  in  awe  of  them. 
Jump  right  in  and  take  care  of  yourself.  Vote 
for  party,  but  make  arrangements  before  you  vote 
—  no;  I  forgot.  You  stand  for  a  real  principle, 
and  success  may  lie  for  you  in  standing  by  it. 
Yes,  on  the  whole,  I  believe  I  would  stand  by 
principle;  it  will  bring  you  out  in  greater  relief 
from  the  rest  of  them,  and  then  the  people  may 
begin  to  think.  I  doubt  it,  however." 

"You  are  a  pessimist,  then,"  said  Bradley,  feel- 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  215 

ing  that  there  was  an  undercurrent  of  dark  philos 
ophy  in  Cargill's  voice. 

"I  am.  The  whole  damned  thing  is  a  botch, 
in  my  opinion.  You  may  find  it  different,"  he 
said,  with  a  mocking  gleam  in  his  eyes  as  he  rose 
and  walked  away.  Bradley  did  not  believe  the 
man  meant  half  he  said,  and  yet  his  bitterness 
had  thrown  a  sombre  shadow  over  his  heart. 
The  vista  ahead  was  not  quite  so  bright  as  it  had 
been  except  where  Miss  Wilbur  seemed  to  walk. 
He  longed  to  go  out  and  find  her,  and  tried  to 
content  himself  with  walking  up  and  down  the 
street,  which  seemed  incredibly  brilliant  with  its 
lighted  windows  and  streams  of  gay  young  people 
coming  and  going. 

At  last  he  came  to  a  corner  where  he  saw  the 
name  of  her  street  upon  the  lamp  post,  and  the 
hunger  to  see  her  was  irresistible.  He  rushed  up 
the  street  with  desperate  haste.  He  wished  he 
had  started  sooner.  It  was  eight  o'clock  and 
there  was  danger  that  she  might  be  gone  out. 
The  electric  cars  hardly  diverted  him  as  they 
came  floating  weirdly  down  the  line  —  the  trolley 
invisible,  the  wheels  emitting  green  sheets  of 
light  at  the  crossings. 

The  street  grew  more  quiet  as  it  climbed  the 
hill,  and  at  last  became  quite  like  Rock  River, 
15 


216  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

with  its  rows  of  small  wooden  houses  on  each  side 
of  the  maple-lined  streets,  through  which  the 
keen  wind  went  hissing.  The  stars  glittered 
through  the  clear  cold  air  like  crystals  of  green 
and  gold  and  white  fire.  As  he  walked  along, 
his  newly  acquired  honors  fell  away  from  him, 
together  with  his  war  for  the  grange,  and  his 
ambitious  plans  displayed  their  warmer  side.  He 
began  to  feel  that  all  he  was  and  was  to  do  must 
be  shared  with  a  woman  in  order  that  he  could 
enjoy  it  himself,  and  he  had  known  for  a  long 
time  that  Ida  was  that  woman. 

His  face  lifted  to  the  stars  as  he  implored  their 
aid  in  a  vast  and  dangerous  enterprise.  It  meant 
all  or  nothing  to  him.  He  was  in  the  mood  to 
risk  all  his  life  and  plans  that  night  if  she  had 
been  with  him.  The  strangeness  of  the  city  had 
exalted  him  to  the  mood  where  his  timidity  was 
gone. 

When  he  came  to  the  house,  he  found  it  all 
dark  save  a  dim  light  in  the  rear,  and  it  made  him 
shiver  with  a  premonition  of  failure.  A  servant 
girl  answered  his  ring.  He  had  the  hope  that 
this  was  the  wrong  house  after  all. 

"Can  you  tell  me  if  Miss  Wilbur  lives  here  ?" 

"Yassir,  but  she  nat  haar,"  answered  the  girl, 
with  the  Norwegian  accent. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  217 

"  Where  is  she  ? " 

"Ay  nat  know.  Ay  tank  she  ees  good  ways 
off;  her  moder  she  ees  gawn  to  churtz." 

Bradley  no  longer  looked  at  the  stars  as  he 
walked  along  the  street.  All  his  doubts  and  fears 
and  his  timidity  and  his  reticence  came  back  upon 
him,  and  something  warm  and  sweet  seemed  to 
go  out  of  the  far  vista  of  his  life.  He  felt  that 
he  had  lost  her. 


218  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 


XIX. 

CARGILL    TAKES    BRADLEY    IN    HAND. 

CARGILL  was  not  at  the  table  the  next  morn 
ing,  but  he  came  in  later,  and  greeted  Bradley 
brusquely,  as  he  flung  his  rag  of  a  hat  on  the 
floor. 

"Well,  legislator,  what  is  on  the  tapis  this 
morning  ?  Anything  I  can  do  for  you  ?  " 

"No,  I  guess  not.  I  am  going  to  look  up  a 
new  boarding-house." 

"What's  the  matter  with  this  ? " 

"Too  rich  for  my  blood." 

"Just  repeat  that,  please." 

"  Can't  stand  the  expense." 

Cargill  poured  the  cream  on  his  oatmeal  before 
he  replied :  "  But,  dear  sir,  nothing  is  too  good  for 
a  representative.  Young  man,  you  don't  seem  to 
know  how  to  farm  yourself  out." 

All    day   Saturday    the    Windom    rotunda  was 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  219 

crowded  with  men.  The  speakerships,  the  house 
offices,  were  being  contested  for  here ;  the  real 
battle  was  being  fought  here,  and  under  Cargill's 
cynical  comment  the  scene  assumed  great  signifi 
cance  to  Bradley's  uninitiated  eyes.  They  took 
seats  on  the  balcony  which  ran  around  the 
"bear  pit,"  as  he  called  it.  Around  them, 
flitting  to  and  fro,  were  dozens  of  bright,  rather 
self-sufficient  young  women. 

"This  is  one  of  the  most  dangerous  and  demor 
alizing  features  of  each  legislature,"  he  said  to 
Bradley.  "These  girls  come  down  here  from 
every  part  of  the  State  to  cajole  and  flatter  their 
way  into  a  State  House  office.  You  see  them 
down  there  buttonholing  every  man  they  can  get 
an  introduction  to,  and  some  of  them  don't  even 
wait  for  an  introduction.  They'd  be  after  you  if 
you  were  a  Republican." 

Bradley  looked  out  upon  it  all  with  a  growing 
shadow  in  his  eyes.  He  suddenly  saw  terrible 
results  of  this  unwomanly  struggle  for  office. 
He  saw  back  of  it  also  the  need  for  employ 
ment  which  really  forced  these  girls  into  such  a 
contest. 

"They  soon  learn,"  Cargill  was  saying,  "where 
their  strength  lies.  The  pretty  ones  and  the 
bold  ones  succeed  where  the  plain  and  timid  ones 


220  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

fail.  It  has  its  abuses.  Good  God,  how  could  it 
be  otherwise  !  It's  a  part  of  our  legislative  rot 
tenness.  Legal  labor  pays  so  little,  and  vice  and 
corruption  pay  so  well.  Now  see  those  two  girls 
button-holing  that  leprous  old  goat  Bergheim !  If 
it  don't  mean  ruin  to  them  both,  it  will  be  because 
they're  as  knowing  as  he  is.  Every  year  this 
thing  goes  on.  What  the  friends  and  parents  of 
these  girls  are  thinking  of,  I'll  be  damned  if  I 
know." 

Bradley  was  dumb  with  the  horror  of  it  all. 
He  had  such  an  instinctive  reverence  for  women 
that  this  scene  produced  in  him  a  profound,  almost 
despairing  sorrow.  He  sat  there  after  Cargill  left 
him,  and  gazed  upon  it  all  with  stern  eyes.  There 
was  no  more  tragical  thing  to  him  than  the  woman 
who  could  willingly  allure  men  for  pay.  It  made 
him  shudder  to  see  those  bright,  pretty  girls  go 
down  among  those  men,  whose  hard,  peculiar, 
savage  stare  he  knew  almost  as  well  as  a  woman. 

They  did  not  know  that  he  was  a  legislator, 
and  he  escaped  their  importunities ;  but  he  over 
heard  several  of  them,  as  they  came  up  with  some 
member — sometimes  a  married  man — and  took 
seats  on  the  balcony  near  him. 

"But  you  had  no  business  to  promise  Miss 
Jones !  How  could  you  when  I  was  living?" 


A  SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  221 

"But  I  didn't  know  you  then!" 

"  Well,  then,  now  you've  seen  me,  you  can  tell 
Miss  Jones  your  contract  don't  go,"  laughed  the 
girl. 

"Oh,  that  wouldn't  do,  she'd  kick." 

"  Let'er  kick.  She  aint  got  any  people  who  are 
constituents.  My  people  are  your  constituents." 

Bradley  walked  away  sick  at  heart.  As  he 
passed  a  settee  near  the  stairway,  he  saw  another 
girl  with  a  childish  face  looking  up  at  a  hard- 
featured  young  man,  and  saying  with  eager,  wist 
ful  voice,  her  hands  clasped,  "Oh,  I  hope  you  can 
help  me.  I  need  it  so  much." 

Her  sweet  face  haunted  him  because  of  its 
suggested  helplessness  and  its  danger.  His  heart 
swelled  with  an  indefinable  and  bitter  rebellion. 
Everywhere  was  a  scramble  for  office  —  every 
where  a  pouring  into  the  city  from  the  farms  and 
villages.  Why  was  it  ?  Was  he  not  a  part  of  the 
movement  as  well  as  these  girls  ?  Did  it  not  all 
spring  from  the  barrenness  and  vacuity  of  rural 
life  ? 

Bradley  went  to  church,  for  the  reason  that  he 
had  nothing  better  to  do,  and,  in  order  to  get  as 
much  out  of  it  as  possible,  went  to  the  largest 
sanctuary  in  the  city.  The  hotels  were  thronged 
by  men  who  took  little  thought  of  the  day.  The 


222  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

rotunda  echoed  with  roaring  laughter  and  the 
tramp  of  feet.  Every  new  member  was  being 
introduced  and  manipulated,  but  Bradley  shrank 
from  declaring  himself.  His  name,  B.  Talcott, 
conveyed  no  information  to  those  who  saw  it  on 
the  register,  and  so  he  sat  aside  from  the  crowd 
all  day,  untouched  by  the  male  lobbyist  or  the 
girl  office  seekers. 

He  went  next  day,  according  to  promise,  to  call 
at  Cargill's  office,  which  was  on  the  fifth  floor  of 
a  large  six-story  building  on  the  main  street. 
There  were  two  ornamental  ground-glass  doors 
opening  from  the  end  of  a  narrow  hall.  One  was 
marked,  "Bergen  &  Cargill,  Commission  Mer 
chants,  Private,"  and  Bradley  entered.  A  man 
seated  at  a  low  table  was  operating  a  telegraphic 
machine.  He  was  in  his  shirt  sleeves,  and  wore 
blue  checked  over-sleeves,  and  carried  a  handker 
chief  under  his  chin  to  keep  his  collar  from  get 
ting  soiled.  He  sat  near  two  desks  which  sepa 
rated  the  private  room  from  the  larger  room,  in 
which  were  seated  several  men  looking  at  one 
side  of  the  wall,  which  was  a  blackboard  checked 
off  in  small  squares  by  red  lines.  Columns  of 
figures  in  chalk  were  there  displayed. 

Cargill  did  not  seem  to  be  about,  and  the  busy 
operator  did  not  see  the  visitor.  A  brisk  young 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  223 

man  of  Scandinavian  type  was  walking  about  in 
the  larger  office  with  a  piece  of  chalk  in  his  hand. 
He  came  to  the  desk  and  looked  inquiringly  at 
Bradley,  who  started  to  speak,  but  the  sonorous 
voice  of  the  operator  interrupted  him. 

"Three  eighths  bid  on  wheat,"  he  called,  and 
handed  a  little  slip  of  paper  to  the  brisk  young 
man  with  the  flaxen  mustache. 

"Wheat,  three  eighths,"  he  repeated  in  a  reso 
nant  tone,  and  proceeded  to  put  the  figures  in  a 
small  square  under  the  section  marked  "Wheat" 
on  the  blackboard.  When  he  came  back,  Bradley 
asked  for  Cargill. 

"He'll  be  in  soon  ;  take  a  seat." 

"Three  eighths  bid.  They  still  hammer  the 
market,  as  they  sold  short,"  shouted  the  operator. 

Bergen  repeated  the  telegram  to  the  crowd. 
"  Of  course  they'll  do  that,"  said  one  of  the 
smokers,  a  young  man  with  an  assumption  of 
great  wisdom  on  all  matters  relating  to  wheat. 
He  looked  prematurely  knowing,  and  spit  with  a 
manly  air. 

As  Bradley  took  a  seat  at  the  desk,  Bergen 
was  calling  into  the  telephone  in  a  high,  sonorous, 
monotonous  voice,  "Wheat  opened  at  ninety-three, 
three  quarters ;  sold  as  high  as  ninety-four ;  is 
now  ninety-three  and  three  eighths.  Corn  opened 


224  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFJCE. 

at  forty-two;  is  now  forty-one  and  seven  eighths. 
Bradstreet's  decrease  on  both  coasts  the  past 
week,  two  and  a  quarter  millions.  Cables  very 
strong." 

Cargill  came  in  a  little  later,  and  greeted  Brad 
ley  with  a  nod  while  crossing  the  room  to  look 
at  the  blackboard. 

"Draw  up  a  chair,"  he  said,  and  they  took  a 
seat  at  the  table,  while  the  business  of  the  office 
went  on.  "You'll  be  interested  in  knowing  some 
thing  about  this  business,"  he  said  to  Bradley. 
"It's  as  legitimate  as  buying  or  selling  real  estate 
on  a  commission ;  but  so  far  as  the  popular 
impression  goes,  there  is  no  difference  between 
this  and  a  bucket-shop." 

"It's  all  very  new  to  me,"  said  Bradley.  "I 
don't  know  the  difference  between  this  and  the 
bucket-shop." 

"Ninety-three  and  seven  eighths  bid  on  wheat," 
called  Bergen  from  a  slip,  as  he  walked  back  and 
chalked  the  latest  intelligence  upon  the  board. 

"Well,  there  is  a  difference.  In  this  case,  we 
simply  buy  and  sell  on  commission.  These  are 
real  purchases  and  sales.  The  order  for  wheat  is 
transmitted  to  Chicago  and  registered,  and  has  its 
effect  upon  the  market ;  whereas  in  a  bucket-shop 
the  sale  does  not  go  out  of  the  office,  and,  if  there 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  225 

is  a  loss  to  the  customer,  the  proprietor  gains  it. 
In  other  words,  we  buy  and  sell  for  others,  with 
no  personal  interest  in  the  sale ;  the  bucket-shop 
is  a  pure  gambling  establishment,  where  men  bet 
on  what  other  men  are  going  to  do.  But  that 
ain't  what  I  had  you  call  to  talk  over.  I  want 
you  to  meet  Bergen.  Chris,  come  over  here," 
he  called.  "  I  want  to  introduce  the  Honorable 
Talcott  of  Rock  River.  He's  started  in,  like 
yourself,  to  reform  politics. 

"The  reason  why  I  wanted  you  to  meet  Ber 
gen,"  Cargill  went  on,  "is  because  he  is  a  sincerer 
lover  of  literature  than  myself,  and  like  yourself,  I 
imagine,  believes  thoroughly  in  the  classics.  He's 
translating  Ibsen  for  the  Square  Table  Club. 
His  idea  of  amusement  ain't  mine,  I  needn't  say." 

"  New  York  still  hammers  away  on  the  market. 
Partridge  quietly  buying  to  cover  on  the  decline." 

"Excuse  me  a  moment,"  said  Bergen,  returning 
to  business. 

Cargill  took  an  easy  position.  "I  don't  know 
why  I  have  sized  you  up  as  literary  in  general 
effect,  but  I  have.  That's  one  reason  why  I  took 
to  you.  It's  so  damned  unusual  to  find  a  politi 
cian  that  has  a  single  idea  above  votes.  And 
then  I'm  literary  myself,"  he  said,  his  face  a  mask 
of  impenetrable  gravity.  "  I  wrote  up  the  sheep 


226  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

industry  of  Iowa  for  the  Agricultural  Encyclopae 
dia.  That  puts  me  in  the  front  rank  of  Des 
Moines  literary  aspirants. 

"Towns  like  this,"  he  said,  going  off  on  a 
speculative  side  track,  "have  a  two-per-cent.  popu 
lation  who  are  inordinately  literary.  They  recog 
nize  my  genius.  The  other  ninety-eight  per  cent, 
don't  care  a  continental  damn  for  Shakespeare  or 
anybody  else,  barring  Mary  Jane  Holmes,  of 
course,  and  the  five-cent  story  papers.  But  liter 
ary  Des  Moines  is  literary.  They  stand  by 
Shakespeare  and  Homer,  I  can  tell  you,  and  they 
recognize  genius  when  they  see  it.  By  the  way, 
Bergen,"  he  said,  calling  his  brother-in-law  to  him 
again,  "  we  must  make  this  young  man  acquainted 
with  our  one  literary  girl." 

"Wheat  is  ninety-four  bid.  New  York  strong." 
It  was  impossible  to  hold  Bergen's  attention,  how 
ever,  with  a  sharp  bulge  on  the  market,  and  Car- 
gill  was  forced  to  turn  to  Bradley  again. 

"There  is  a  girl  in  this  town  who  has  the  liter 
ary  quality.  True,  she  has  recognized  my  ability, 
which  prejudices  me  in  her  favor,  of  course.  In 
turn  I  presented  her  with  my  report  on  the  sheep 
industry." 

Bradley  laughed,  but  Cargill  proceeded  as  if 
there  were  nothing  funny  in  the  situation  — 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  227 

"And  she  read  it,  actually,  and  quoted  it  in 
one  of  her  great  speeches.  It  made  the  reporter 
bug  out  his  eyes.  He  said  he  had  observed  of 
late  quite  a  vein  of  poetry  running  through  Miss 
Wilbur's  speeches,  which  lifted  them  out  of  the 
common  rut." 

Bradley  lost  sight  of  the  humor  in  this  speech 
at  the  sound  of  Ida's  name,  and  his  face  flushed. 
He  had  not  heard  her  name  spoken  by  a  third 
person  in  months,  and  had  never  dared  to  say  it 
out  loud  himself. 

Cargill  went  on:  "She's  an  infernal  heretic 
and  suffragist  and  all  that,  but  she's  a  power. 
Her  name  is  Wilbur  —  Ida  Wilbur.  Used  to  lec 
ture  for  the  Grange  or  something  of  that  kind. 
Is  still  lecturing,  I  believe,  but  the  Grange  has 
snuffed  out." 

Six  or  eight  men  came  into  the  larger  room 
talking  loudly  and  excitedly  about  the  market,  and 
Cargill's  attention  was  drawn  off  by  the  resonant 
reports  of  the  Chicago  market. 

"  The  market  shows  great  elasticity.  Western 
advices  contribute  to  the  Bull  feeling." 

"Do  you  know  Miss  Wilbur?"  Bradley  asked 
when  Cargill  came  back,  being  afraid  Cargill 
might  forget  the  topic  of  conversation. 

"Yes,  I  meet  her  occasionally.     I  meet  her  at 


228  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

the  Square  Table  Club,  where  we  fight  on  lit 
erature.  They  call  it  the  Square  Table  Club, 
because  they  disagree  with  the  opinions  of  the 
most  of  us  real  literary  people  of  the  town." 

Bradley  managed  to  say,  in  a  comparatively 
firm  tone  of  voice,  that  he  had  heard  of  Miss  Wil 
bur  as  a  Grange  lecturer,  and  that  he  would  like 
to  know  more  about  her. 

"Well,  I'll  introduce  you.  She  aint  very  easy 
to  understand.  She  is  one  of  these  infernal 
advanced  women.  Now,  I  like  thinkers,  but 
what  right  has  a  woman  to  think?  To  think 
is  our  manly  prerogative.  I'm  free  to  admit  that 
we  don't  exercise  it  to  much  better  advantage 
than  we  do  our  prerogative  to  vote ;  but  then, 
damn  it,  how  could  we  stand  wives  that  think  ? " 

Bradley  had  given  up  trying  to  understand 
when  Cargill  was  joking  and  when  he  was  in 
earnest.  He  knew  this  was  either  merciless 
sarcasm  or  the  most  pig-headed  bigotry.  Any 
how  he  did  not  care  to  say  anything  for  fear  of 
drawing  him  off  into  a  discussion  of  an  imper 
sonal  subject,  just  when  he  seemed  likely  to  tell 
something  about  Ida's  early  life. 

It  was  a  singular  place  to  receive  this  informa 
tion.  He  sat  there  with  his  elbow  on  the  desk, 
leaning  his  head  on  his  palm,  studying  Cargill's 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  229 

face  as  he  talked.  Over  at  the  other  enc!  bt  the 
room,  the  operator  was  feeding  himself  on  a 
pickle  with  his  left  hand,  and  receiving  the  tele 
grams  from  the  far-off,  roaring,  tumultuous  wheat 
exchange,  every  repeated  message  being  a  sort  of 
distant  echo  of  the  ocean  of  cries  and  the  tumult 
of  feet  in  the  city.  They  were  as  much  alone 
and  talking  in  private  as  if  they  were  in  Cargill's 
own  room  at  the  hotel.  Cargill  talked  on,  un 
mindful  of  the  telephone,  the  telegraphic  ticking, 
and  the  brisk,  business-like  action  of  his  partner. 

"Yes,  I  have  known  her  ever  since  she  was  a 
girl.  Her  father  was  a  queer  old  seed  of  a  farmer, 
just  out  of  town  here,  cranky  on  religion  —  a  Uni- 
versalist,  I  believe.  Had  the  largest  library  of 
his  town ;  I  don't  know  but  the  largest  private 
library  outside  of  a  city  in  the  State.  His  house 
was  literally  walled  with  books.  How  he  got  'em 
I  don't  know.  It  was  currently  believed  that  he 
was  full  of  information,  but  I  never  heard  of  any 
one  who  was  able  to  get  very  much  out  of  him. 
His  wife  had  been  a  beauty;  that  was  her  dowry 
to  her  daughter. 

"The  girl  went  to  .school  here  at  sixteen.  I 
was  a  student  then,  six  or  seven  years  older  than 
she,  and  I  remember  there  were  about  six  of  us 
who  used  to  stand  around  the  schoolhouse  door  to 


230  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

carry  her  books  for  her;  but  she  just  walked  past 
us  all  without  a  turn  of  the  head.  She  didn't 
seem  to  know  what  ailed  us.  She  was  one  of 
these  girls  born  all  brains,  some  way.  I  never 
saw  her  face  flushed  in  my  life,  and  her  big  eyes 
always  made  me  shiver  when  she  turned  them  on 
me." 

"Wheat  falls  to  ninety-three  and  a  fourth. 
There  is  a  break  in  the  market.  New  York  is 
still  hammering,"  called  the  operator,  his  mouth 
full  of  pie. 

Cargill  was  distinctly  talking  to  himself,  almost 
as  much  as  to  Bradley.  The  hardness  had  gone 
out  of  his  eyes,  and  his  voice  had  a  touch  of 
unconscious  sadness  in  it. 

"Does  Miss  Wilbur  live  here?"  Bradley  asked, 
to  start  him  off  again. 

"Yes,  she  went  into  the  Grange  when  she  was 
eighteen,  just  after  she  graduated  from  our  uni 
versity  here.  Had  a  good  deal  of  your  enthusi 
asm,  I  should  judge.  Expected  to  revolutionize 
things  some  way.  I  don't  take  very  much  inter 
est  in  her  public  work,  but  I  thoroughly  appre 
ciate  her  literary  perception."  He  had  got  back 
to  his  usual  humor. 

"Chris,  when  does  the  club  meet  next?" 

"Friday  night,  I  believe." 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  231 

"All  right.  I'll  take  you  up,  and  introduce 
you  into  the  charmed  circle.  They  pride  them 
selves  on  being  modern  up  there,  though  I  don't 
see  much  glory  in  being  modern." 

Bradley  stood  for  a  moment  at  the  door,  look 
ing  at  this  strange  scene.  It  appealed  to  him 
with  its  strangeness,  and  its  suggestion  of  the 
great  battles  on  the  street  which  he  had  read  of 
in  the  papers.  The  telegraph  machine  clicked 
out  every  important  movement  in  Chicago  and 
New  York.  The  manager  called  up  his  custom 
ers,  and  bawled  into  the  telephone  the  condition 
of  the  market  and  the  significant  gossip  of  the  far- 
off  exchange  halls.  It  was  so  strange,  and  yet  so 
familiar,  that  he  went  away  with  his  head  full  of 
those  cabalistic  sentences  — 

"New  York  still  hammering  away.  Partridge 
quietly  buying  to  cover  on  the  decline." 


16 


232  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 


XX. 

AT   THE    STATE    HOUSE. 

THAT  the  invitation  to  attend  the  Square  Table 
Club  over-shadowed  the  importance  and  signifi 
cance  of  Bradley's  entrance  into  public  life,  was 
an  excellent  commentary  upon  his  real  character. 
The  State  House,  however,  appealed  to  his  imag 
ination  very  strongly  as  he  walked  up  its  unfin 
ished  lawn,  amid  the  heaps  of  huge  limestone 
blocks,  his  eyes  upon  the  looming  facade  of  the 
west  front.  He  walked  the  echoing  rotunda  with 
a  timid  air;  and  the  beautiful  soaring  vault  was 
so  majestic  in  his  eyes,  he  wondered  if  Wash 
ington  could  be  finer.  There  were  a  few  other 
greenhorns,  like  himself,  looking  the  building 
over  with  the  same  minute  scrutiny.  He  entered 
all  of  the  rooms  into  which  it  was  possible  to 
penetrate,  and  at  last  into  the  library,  a  cheerful, 
rectangular  room,  into  which  the  sun  streamed 
plenteously. 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  233 

There  was  hardly  any  one  in  either  the  Senate 
or  the  Representative  Halls  except  farmer-like 
groups  of  people,  sometimes  a  family  group  of 
four  or  five,  including  the  grandmother  or  grand 
father.  They  were  mainly  in  rough  best  suits  of 
gray,  or  ostentatiously  striped  cassimere.  The 
young  men  wore  wide  hats,  pushed  back,  in  some 
cases,  to  display  a  smooth,  curling  wave  of  hair, 
carefully  combed  down  over  their  foreheads.  He 
was  able  to  catalogue  them  by  reference  to  his  old 
companions,  Ed  Blackler,  Shep  Watson,  Sever 
Anderson,  and  others. 

Soon  the  crowds  thickened,  and  groups  of  men 
entered,  talking  and  laughing  loudly.  They  were 
wholly  at  their  ease,  being  plainly  old  and  experi 
enced  members.  They  greeted  each  other  with 
boisterous  cries  and  powerful  handshaking. 

"  Hello,  Stineberg,  I  hoped  you'd  git  snowed 
under.  Back  again,  eh?" 

"Well,  I'll  be  damned!  Aint  your  county  got 
any  more  sense  than  to  send  such  a  specimen 
as  you  back  ?  Why  weren't  you  around  to  the 
caucus  ?" 

Bradley  stood  around  awkwardly  alone,  not 
knowing  just  what  to  do.  Perhaps  some  of  these 
men  would  be  glad  to  see  him  if  they  knew  him, 
but  he  could  not  think  of  going  to  introduce  him- 


234  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

self.  Being  new  in  politics,  there  was  not  a  man 
there  whose  face  he  recognized.  The  few  that  he 
had  met  at  the  hotel  were  not  in  sight.  He  felt 
as  if  he  had  been  thrust  into  this  jovial  company, 
and  was  unwelcome. 

The  House  was  called  to  order  by  one  of  the 
members  of  the  capital  county,  and  prayer  was 
offered.  He  sat  quietly  in  his  seat  as  things  went 
on.  The  session  adjourned  after  electing  tem 
porary  speaker,  clerk,  etc.  Bradley  felt  so  alien 
to  it  all  that  he  scarcely  took  the  trouble  to 
vote ;  and  when  the  committee  on  credentials  was 
appointed,  he  felt  nervously  in  his  pocket  to  see 
that  his  papers  were  safe.  He  felt  very  much  as 
he  used  to  when,  as  a  boy,  he  went  to  have  his 
hair  cut,  and  sat  in  torture  during  the  whole  oper 
ation,  in  the  fear  that  his  quarter  (all  he  had  with 
him)  might  be  lost,  and  trembling  to  think  what 
would  happen  in  such  a  case. 

That  night  he  moved  to  a  new  boarding-place. 
He  secured  a  room  near  the  Capitol,  and  went  to 
supper  in  a  small  private  house  near  by,  which 
had  a  most  astonishing  amplitude  of  dining-room. 
He  felt  quite  at  home  there,  for  the  food  was  put 
on  the  table  in  the  good  old  way,  and  passed 
around  from  hand  to  hand.  The  mashed  potato 
tasted  better,  piled  high,  with  a  lump  of  butter  in 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  235 

the  top  of  it ;  and  the  slices  of  roast  beef,  out 
spread  on  the  platter,  enabled  him  to  get  the  crisp 
outside,  if  it  happened  to  start  from  his  end  of  the 
table.  There  were  judges  and  generals  and  sena 
tors  and  legislators  of  various  ranks  all  about  him. 
Crude,  rough,  wholesome  fellows,  most  of  them, 
with  big,  brawny  hands  like  his  own,  and  loud, 
hearty  voices.  It  was  impossible  to  stand  in  awe 
of  a  judge  who  handled  his  knife  more  deftly  than 
his  fork,  and  spooned  the  potato  out  of  the  big, 
earthen-ware  dish  with  a  resounding  slap.  He 
began  to  see  that  these  men  were  exactly  like  the 
people  he  had  been  with  all  his  life.  He  argued, 
however,  that  they  were  perhaps  the  poorer  and 
the  more  honorable  part  of  the  legislature. 

He  wrote  a  note  to  Judge  Brown,  telling  him 
that  he  was  settled,  but  was  taking  very  little  part 
in  the  organizing  of  the  House.  He  did  not  say 
that  he  was  disappointed  in  his  reception,  but  he 
was  ;  his  vanity  had  been  hurt.  His  canvass  had 
attracted  considerable  attention  from  the  Demo 
cratic  press  of  the  country,  and  he  expected  to  be 
received  with  great  favor  by  them.  He  had  come 
out  of  Republicanism  for  their  sake,  and  they 
ought  to  recognize  him.  He  did  not  consider 
that  no  one  knew  him  by  sight,  and  that  recogni 
tion  was  impossible. 


236  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

He  was  at  the  Capitol  again  early  the  next 
morning,  and  found  the  same  scene  being  re-en 
acted.  Straggling  groups  of  roughly-dressed  farm 
ers  loitered  timidly  along  the  corridors,  brisk  clerks 
dashed  to  and  fro,  and  streams  of  men  poured  in 
and  out  the  doors  of  the  legislative  halls.  Brad 
ley  entered  unobserved,  and  took  a  seat  at  the  rear 
of  the  hall  on  a  sofa.  He  did  not  feel  safe  in  tak 
ing  a  seat. 

It  was  a  solemn  moment  to  the  new  legislator 
as  he  stood  before  the  clerk,  and,  with  lifted 
hand,  listened  to  the  oath  of  office  read  in  the 
clerk's  sounding  voice.  He  swore  solemnly,  with 
the  help  of  God,  to  support  the  Constitution,  and 
serve  his  people  to  the  best  of  his  ability ;  and  he 
meant  it.  It  did  not  occur  to  him  that  this  oath 
was  a  shuffling  and  indefinite  obligation.  The 
room  seemed  to  grow  a  little  dimmer  as  he  stood 
there;  the  lofty  ceiling,  rich  in  its  colors,  grand 
and  spacious  to  him,  seemed  to  gather  new  maj 
esty,  just  as  his  office  as  lawmaker  gathered  a  vast 
and  sacred  significance. 

But  as  he  came  back  to  his  seat,  he  heard  a 
couple  of  old  members  laugh.  "Comin'down  to 
save  their  country.  They'll  learn  to  save  their 
bacon  before  their  term  is  up.  That  young  feller 
looks  like  one  of  those  retrenchment  and  reform 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  237 

cusses,  one  of  the  fellers  who  never  want  to 
adjourn  —  down  here  for  business,  ye  know." 

Their  laughter  made  Bradley  turn  hot  with 
indignation. 

The  selection  of  seats  was  the  next  great  feat 
ure.  The  names  of  all  the  members  were  written 
upon  slips  of  paper  and  shaken  together  in  a  box, 
while  the  members  stood  laughing  and  talking  in 
the  back  part  of  the  house.  A  blind-folded  mes 
senger  boy  selected  the  slips ;  and  as  the  clerk 
read,  in  a  sounding  voice,  the  name  on  each  slip, 
the  representative  so  called  went  forward  and 
selected  his  seat. 

Bradley's  name  was  called  about  the  tenth,  and 
he  went  forward  timidly,  and  took  a  seat  directly 
in  the  centre  of  the  House.  He  did  not  care  to 
seem  anxious  for  a  front  seat.  The  Democratic 
members  looked  at  him  closely,  and  he  stepped 
out  of  his  obscurity  as  he  went  forward. 

A  young  man  of  about  his  own  age,  a  stalwart 
fellow,  reached  about  and  shook  hands.  "My 
name  is  Nelson  Floyd.  I  wanted  to  see  you." 

Floyd  took  the  first  opportunity  to  introduce 
him  to  two  or  three  of  the  Democratic  members, 
but  he  sat  quietly  in  his  seat  during  the  whole 
session,  and  took  very  little  interest  in  the 
speakership  contest,  which  seemed  to  go  off  very 


238  A    SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

smoothly.  He  believed  the  speaker  implicitly, 
when  he  stated  the  usual  lie  about  having  no 
pledges  to  redeem,  and  that  he  was  free  to  choose 
his  committee  with  regard  only  to  superior  fit 
ness,  etc.,  and  was  shocked  when  Floyd  told  him 
that  a  written  contract  had  been  drawn  up  and 
signed,  before  the  legislature  met,  wherein  the 
principal  clerkships  had  been  disposed  of  to  party 
advantage.  It  was  his  second  introduction  to  the 
hypocrisy  of  officialism. 

If  he  had  been  neglected  before,  he  was  not 
now;  all  sorts  of  people  came  about  him  with 
axes  to  grind. 

"Is  this  Mr.  Talcott  ?  Ah,  yes!  I  have  heard 
of  your  splendid  canvass  —  splendid  canvass ! 
Now  —  ahem! — I'd  like  you  to  speak  a  good 
word  for  my  girl,  for  the  assistant  clerkship  of 
the  Ways  and  Means";  while  another  wanted  his 
son,  Mr.  John  Smith,  for  page. 

He  told  them  that  he  had  nothing  to  say  about 
those  things.  "I  am  counted  with  the  Demo 
crats,  anyhow;  I  haven't  any  influence." 

They  patted  him  on  the  shoulder,  and  winked 
slyly.  "  Oh,  we  know  all  about  that !  But  every 
word  helps,  you  know." 

Going  out  at  the  close  of  the  session,  he  met 
Cargill. 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  239 

"Well,  legislator,  how  goes  it?" 

"Oh,  I  don't  know;  smoothly,  I  guess.  I've 
kept  pretty  quiet." 

"That's  right.  The  Republicans  have  every 
thing  in  their  hands  this  session." 

"Hello,  Cargill !  "  called  a  smooth,  jovial  voice. 

"Ah,  Barney!  Talcott,  this  is  an  excellent 
opportunity.  This  is  Barney,  the  great  railway 
lobbyist  Barney,  here  is  a  new  victim  for  you  — 
Talcott,  of  Rock." 

"  Glad  to  see  you,  Mr.  Talcott." 

Bradley  shook  hands  with  moderate  enthusi 
asm,  looking  into  Barney's  face  with  great  inter 
est.  The  lobbyist  was  large  and  portly  and 
smiling.  His  moustache  drooped  over  his  mouth, 
and  his  chin  had  a  jolly-looking  hollow  in  it.  His 
hazel  eyes,  once  frank  and  honest,  were  a  little 
clouded  with  drink. 

"Cargill  is  an  infernal  old  cynic,"  he  exclaimed, 
"and  he  is  corporation  mad.  Don't  size  us  up 
according  to  his  estimate." 

It  did  not  seem  possible  that  this  man  could  be 
the  great  tool  of  the  railway  interest,  and  yet  that 
was  his  reputation. 

Cargill  moralized  on  the  members,  as  they 
walked  on  :  "  Barney's  on  his  rounds  getting 
hold  of  the  new  members.  He  scents  a  corrupt- 


240  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

ible  man  as  the  buzzard  does  carrion.  Every  ses 
sion  young  fellows  like  you  come  down  here  with 
high  and  beautiful  ideas  of  office,  and  start  in  to 
reform  everything,  and  end  by  becoming  meat  for 
Barney  and  his  like.  There  is  something  destruct 
ive  in  the  atmosphere  of  politics." 

Bradley  listened  to  Cargill  incredulously.  These 
things  could  not  be  true.  These  groups  of  jovial, 
candid-looking  men  could  not  be  the  moral  wrecks 
they  were  represented.  He  had  expected  to  see 
men  who  looked  villainous  in  some  way,  with 
bloated  faces  —  disreputable,  beery  fellows.  He 
had  not  risen  to  the  understanding  that  'the  suc 
cessful  villain  is  always  plausible. 

When  he  left  the  Capitol  and  went  down  the 
steps  with  Cargill,  he  felt  that  he  had  fairly 
entered  upon  the  work  of  his  term. 

"Now,  young  man,"  said  Cargill,  as  they 
parted,  "let  me  advise  you.  The  fight  of  this 
session  is  going  to  be  the  people  against  the  cor 
porations.  There  are  two  positions  and  only  two. 
You  take  your  choice.  If  you  side  with  the 
corporation,  your  success  will  be  instantaneous. 
You  can  rig  out,  and  board  at  the  Richwood,  and 
be  dined  out,  and  taken  to  see  the  town  Saturday 
nights,  and  retire  with  a  nice  little  boost  and  a 
record  to  apologize  for  when  you  go  back  to  Rock 


A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  241 

River;  that  is,  you  can  go  in  for  all  that  there  is 
in  it,  or  you  can  take  your  chances  with  the 
people." 

"  I  will  take  the  chances  with  the  people." 

"  Well,  now,  hold  on !  Don't  deceive  yourself. 
The  people  are  a  mob  yet.  They  are  fickle  as 
the  flames  o'  hell.  They  don't  know  what  they 
do  want,  but  in  the  end  the  man  that  leads  them 
and  stands  by  them  is  sure  of  success." 

The  daily  walk  down  from  the  Capitol  was  very 
beautiful.  As  the  sun  sank  low  it  struck  through 
the  smoke  of  the  city,  and  flooded  the  rotunda  of 
the  building  with  a  warm,  red  light,  which  lay 
along  the  floor  in  great  streams  of  gold,  and 
warmed  each  pillar  till  it  glowed  like  burnished 
copper.  At  such  moments  the  muddy  streets,  the 
poor  hovels,  the  ugly  bricks,  lost  to  sight  beneath 
the  majesty  and  mystery  of  the  sun-transfigured 
smoke  and  the  purple  deeps  of  the  lower  levels 
(out  of  which  the  searching,  pitiless  light  had 
gone),  became  a  sombre  and  engulfing  flood  of 
luminous  darkness. 

"  Here,  here ! "  Cargill  said  one  day,  when 
Bradley  called  his  attention  to  the  view,  "  a  man 
can  swear  and  get  drunk  and  be  a  politician ;  but 
when  he  likes  flowers  or  speaks  of  a  sunset,  his 
goose  is  cooked.  It  is  political  death." 


242  A    SPOIL   OF  OFFICE, 


XXI. 

BRADLEY    AND    CARGILL    CALL   ON    IDA. 

BRADLEY  had  come  to  like  Cargill  very  much. 
He  was  very  thoughtful  in  his  haphazard  way, 
but  not  at  all  like  Radbourn.  Bradley  compared 
every  man  he  met  with  Radbourn  and  Judge 
Brown,  and  every  woman  suffered  comparison  with 
Ida  Wilbur. 

He  went  down  to  meet  Cargill  on  the  night  of 
the  promised  call.  He  found  him  seated  on  the 
small  of  his  back,  his  hands  in  his  pockets.  His 
absurd  little  hat  (that  seemed  to  partake  of  his 
every  mood)  was  rolled  into  a  point  in  front,  and 
pulled  down  aggressively  over  his  eyes.  He  was 
particularly  violent,  and  paid  no  attention  whatever 
to  Bradley. 

"  No,  sir ;  I  am  not  a  prohibitionist.  My  posi 
tion  is  just  this :  If  we  vote  prohibition  in  Iowa, 
the  government  has  no  business  to  license  men  to 
sell  contrary  to  our  regulations." 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  243 

"That's  state's  rights  !"  burst  in  the  other  man 
who  was  trembling  with  rage  and  excitement. 

Cargill  slowly  rose,  transfixing  him  with  a  glare. 
"Go  way,  now;  I  won't  waste  any  more  time  on 
you,"  he  said,  walking  off  with  Bradley.  "Let 
me  see,  we  were  going  to  the  club  to-night."  He 
looked  down  at  his  boots.  "Yes,  they  are  shined ; 
that  puts  a  dress  suit  on  me."  As  he  walked 
along,  he  referred  to  Miss  Wilbur.  "She  is  a 
great  woman,  but  she  is  abnormal  from  my  point 
of  view." 

"Why  so?"  inquired  Bradley. 

"  Well,  look  at  the  life  she  leads.  On  the  road 
constantly,  living  at  hotels.  A  woman  can't  hold 
herself  up  against  such  things." 

"  It  depends  upon  the  woman,"  was  Bradley's 
succinct  protest  against  sweeping  generalizations. 

It  was  crisp  and  clear,  and  the  sound  of  their 
feet  rang  out  in  the  still  air  as  if  they  trod  on 
glass  at  every  step.  They  talked  very  little. 
Bradley  wanted  to  tell  Cargill  that  he  had  already 
met  Miss  Wilbur,  but  he  could  not  see  his  way 
clear  to  make  the  explanation.  Cargill  was 
unwontedly  silent. 

The  Norwegian  girl  ushered  them  into  a  pretty 
little  parlor,  where  a  beautiful  fire  of  coal  was 
burning  in  an  open  grate.  While  they  stood 


244  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

warming  their  stiffened  hands  at  the  cheerful 
blaze,  Ida  entered. 

"  Mr.  Cargill,  this  is  an  unexpected  pleasure." 

"  I  wonder  how  sincere  you  are  in  that.  This 
is  my  friend  Mr.  Talcott." 

Ida  moved  toward  Bradley  with  her  hand  cor 
dially  extended.  "I  think  we  have  met  before," 
she  said. 

"I  call  him  my  friend,"  said  Cargill,  "because 
he  has  not  known  me  long  enough  to  become  my 
enemy." 

"That  is  very  good,  Mr.  Cargill.  Sit  down, 
won't  you?  Please  give  me  your  coats."  She 
moved  about  in  that  pleasant  bustle  of  reception 
so  natural  to  women. 

Cargill  slid  down  into  a  chair  in  his  disjointed 
fashion.  "We  came  to  attend  the  intellectual 
sit-down." 

"Why,  that  doesn't  meet  to-night!  It  meets 
every  other  Friday,  and  this  is  the  other  Friday." 

"  Oh,  is  it  ?  So  much  the  better ;  we  will  see 
you  alone." 

Ida  turned  gravely  to  Bradley.  "Mr.  Cargill  is 
not  often  in  this  mood.  I  generally  draw  him  off 
into  a  fight  on  Mr.  Howell's,  Thackeray  or  Scott." 

"She  prefers  me  in  armor,"  Cargill  explained, 
"and  on  horseback.  My  intellectual  bowlegged- 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  245 

ness,  so  to  say,  and  my  moral  squint  are  less 
obtrusive  at  an  altitude." 

Ida  laughed  appreciatively.  "Your  extraor 
dinary  choice  of  figures  would  distinguish  you 
among  the  symbolists  of  Paris,"  she  replied." 

This  all  seemed  very  brilliant  and  droll  to  Brad 
ley,  and  he  sat  with  unwavering  eyes  fixed  upon 
Ida,  who  appeared  to  him  in  a  new  light,  more 
softly  alluring  than  ever  —  that  of  the  hostess. 
She  was  dressed  in  some  loose,  rich-colored  robe, 
which  had  the  effect  of  drapery. 

"When  did  you  get  back  ?"  Cargill  inquired,  a 
little  more  humanly. 

"Yesterday,  and  I  am  just  in  the  midst  of  the 
luxury  of  feeling  at  home,  with  no  journeys  to 
make  to-morrow.  I  have  a  friend  I  would  like 
to  introduce  to  you,"  she  said,  rising  and  going 
out.  She  returned  in  a  few  moments  with  a  tall 
young  lady  in  street  dress,  whom  she  introduced 
as  Miss  Cassiday. 

In  a  short  time  Cargill  had  involved  Miss  Cas 
siday  in  a  discussion  of  the  decline  of  literature, 
which  left  Ida  free  to  talk  with  Bradley.  It  was 
the  most  beautiful  evening  in  his  life.  He  talked 
as  never  before.  He  told  her  of  his  reading,  and 
of  his  plans.  He  told  her  of  his  election  to  the 
legislature. 


246  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

"Ah,  that  is  good!"  she  said;  "then  we  have 
one  more  champion  of  women  in  our  State 
House." 

"  Yes,  I  will  do  what  I  can,"  he  said. 

"  I  will  be  here  to  hear  you.  I  am  one  of  the 
committee  in  charge  of  the  bill." 

The  firelight  fell  upon  her  face,  flushing  its  pal 
lor  into  a  beauty  that  exalted  the  young  farmer 
out  of  his  fear  and  reticence.  They  talked  upon 
high  things.  He  told  her  how  he  had  studied  the 
social  question,  since  hearing  her  speak  in  Iowa 
City.  He  called  to  her  mind  great  passages  in 
the  books  she  had  sent  him,  and  quoted  para 
graphs  which  touched  upon  the  fundamental 
questions  at  issue.  He  spoke  of  his  hopes  of 
advancement. 

"I  want  to  succeed,"  he  said,  "in  order  that 
I  may  teach  the  new  doctrine  of  rights.  I  want 
to  carry  into  the  party  I  have  joined  the  real 
democracy.  I  believe  a  new  era  has  come  in  our 
party." 

"I  am  afraid  not,"  she  said,  looking  at  the  fire. 
"I  begin  to  believe  that  we  must  wait  till  a  new 
party  rises  out  of  the  needs  of  people,  just  as  the 
old  Free-soil  Party  rose  to  free  the  slaves.  Don't 
deceive  yourself  about  your  party  in  this  State. 
It  is  after  the  offices,  just  the  same  as  the  party 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  247 

you  have  left.  They  juggle  with  the  tariffs  and 
the  license  question,  because  it  helps  them.  They 
will  drop  any  question  and  any  man  when  they 
think  they  are  going  to  lose  by  retaining  him. 
They  will  drop  you  if  you  get  too  radical.  I  warn 
you!"  she  said,  looking  up  at  him  and  smiling 
with  a  touch  of  bitterness  in  her  smile ;  "  I  am 
dangerous.  My  counsel  does  not  keep  men  in 
office.  I  belong  to  the  minority.  I  am  very 
dangerous." 

"  I'm  not  afraid,"  he  said,  thrilling  with  the 
intensity  of  his  own  voice.  "I  will  trust  human 
reason.  I'm  not  afraid  of  you  —  I  mean  you  can't 
harm  me  by  giving  me  new  thoughts,  and  that's 
what  you've  done  ever  since  that  day  I  heard  you 
first  at  the  picnic.  You've  helped  me  to  get 
where  I  am." 

"I  have?"  she  asked,  in  surprise.  His  eyes 
fell  before  hers.  "  It  will  be  strange  if  I  have 
helped  any  one  to  political  success." 

Bradley  was  silent.  How  could  he  tell  her 
what  she  had  become  to  him  ?  How  could  he  tell 
her  that  she  was  woven  into  the  innermost  mesh 
of  his  intellectual  fibre. 

"  You've    taught    me    to    think,"    he    said,    at 
last.     "You   gave    me    my  first   ambition    to   do 
something." 
17 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 


"I  am  very  glad,"  she  replied,  simply.  "Some 
times  I  get  discouraged.  I  speak  and  people 
app'laud,  and  I  go  away,  and  that  seems  to  be 
all  there  is  to  it.  I  never  hear  a  word  after 
wards  ;  but  once  in  a  while,  some  one  comes  to 
me  or  writes  to  me,  as  you  have  done,  and  that 
gives  me  courage  to  go  on ;  otherwise  I'd  think 
people  came  to  hear  me  simply  to  be  amused." 

She  was  looking  straight  into  the  fire ;  and  the 
light,  streaming  up  along  her  dress,  transfigured 
her  into  something  alien  and  unapproachable. 
The  easy  flex  of  her  untrammelled  waist  was 
magnificent.  She  had  the  effect  of  a  statue, 
draped  and  flooded  with  color. 

Cargill's  penetrating  voice  cut  through  that 
sacred  pause  like  the  rasp  of  a  saw  file.  He  had 
been  listening  to  his  companion  till  he  was  full  of 
rebellion.  He  was  a  bad  listener. 

"  But  what  is  success  ?  Why,  my  dear  young 
woman  "  — 

"Don't  patronize  us,  please,"  Ida  interposed. 
"I  speak  for  poor  Miss  Cassiday,  because  she's 
too  timid  to  rebel.  Nothing  angers  me  more 
than  that  tone.  Call  us  comrades  or  friends,  but 
don't  say  'My  dear  young  woman!"  She  was 
smiling,  but  she  was  more  than  half  in  sober 
earnest. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  249 

Cargill  bowed  low,  and  proceeded  with  scowl 
ing  brow  and  eyes  half-closed  and  fixed  obliquely, 
upon  Ida.  "  Dear  comrades  in  life-battle,  what  is 
success?  You  remember  the  two  lords  in  Lilli- 
put  who  could  leap  the  pack  thread  half  its  width 
higher?" 

"  Don't  drag  Swift  into  our  discussion,"  Ida 
cried.  "Mr.  Cargill's  a  sort  of  American  Swift," 
turning  to  Bradley.  "Don't  let  him  spoil  your 
splendid  optimism.  There  is  a  kind  of  pessimism 
which  is  really  optimism ;  that  is  to  say,  peo 
ple  who  believe  the  imperfect  and  unjust  can 
be  improved  upon.  They  are  called  pessimists 
because  they  dare  to  tell  the  truth  about  the  pres 
ent  ;  but  the  pessimism  of  Mr.  Cargill,  I'm  afraid, 
is  the  pessimism  of  personal  failure." 

There  was  a  terrible  truth  in  this,  and  it  drove 
straight  into  Cargill's  heart.  Bradley  was  pleased 
to  see  Ida  dominate  a  man  who  was  accustomed 
to  master  every  one  who  came  into  his  presence. 
There  was  a  look  on  her  face  which  meant  bat 
tle.  She  did  not  change  her  attitude  of  graceful 
repose,  but  her  face  grew  stern  and  accusing. 
Cargill  looked  at  her,  wearing  the  same  inscruta 
ble  expression  of  scowling  attention  ;  but  a  slow 
flush,  rising  to  his  face,  showed  that  he  had  been 
struck  hard. 


250  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

There  was  a  moment's  pause  full  of  intense 
interest  to  Bradley.  The  combatants  were  deal 
ing  with  each  other  oblivious  of  every  one  else. 

"I  admire  you,  friend  Cargill,"  Ida  went  on, 
"but  your  attitude  is  not  right.  Your  influence 
upon  young  people  is  not  good.  You  are  always 
crying  out  against  things,  but  you  never  try  to 
help.  What  are  you  doing  to  help  things  ?" 

"Crying  out  against  them,"  he  replied,  curtly. 

Ida  dropped  her  glance.  "Yes,  that's  so;  I'll 
admit  that  it  has  that  effect,  or  it  would  if  you 
didn't  talk  of  the  hopelessness  of  trying  to  do 
anything.  Don't  feel  alarmed,"  she  said,  turning 
to  the  others,  "  Mr.  Cargill  and  I  understand  each 
other  very  well.  We've  known  each  other  so  long 
that  we  can  afford  to  talk  plain." 

"This  is  the  first  time  she  ever  let  into  me 
so  directly,"  Cargill  explained.  "  Understand  we 
generally  fight  on  literature,  or  music,  or  the 
woman  question.  This  really  is  the  first  en 
counter  on  my  personal  influence.  I'm  going 
home  to  stanch  my  wounds."  He  rose,  with  a 
return  to  his  usual  manner. 

Ida  made  no  effort  to  detain  them.  "Come 
and  see  me  again,  Mr.  Talcott,  and  don't  let  Mr. 
Cargill  spoil  you." 

After  leaving  the  house,  the  two  men  walked 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  251 

on  a  block  in  silence,  facing  the  wind,  their  over 
coats  drawn  up  about  their  ears. 

"There's  a  woman  I  like,"  Cargill  said,  when 
they  turned  a  corner  and  were  shielded  from  the 
bitter  wind.  "  She  can  forget  her  sex  occasion 
ally  and  become  an  intellect.  Most  women  are 
morbid  on  their  sex.  They  can't  seem  to  escape 
it,  as  a  man  does  part  of  the  time.  They  can't 
rise,  as  this  woman  does,  into  the  sexless  region 
of  affairs  and  of  thought." 

Bradley  lacked  the  courage  to  ask  him  to  speak 
lower,  and  he  went  on.  "She's  had  suitors 
enough  and  flattery  enough  to  turn  her  into  a 
simpering  fashion-plate ;  but  you  can  not  spoil 
brains.  What  the  women  want  is  not  votes ;  it's 
brains,  and  less  morbid  emotions." 

"  She's  a  free  woman  ? "  said  Bradley. 

"  Free  !  Yes,  they'd  all  be  free  if  they  had  her 
brains." 

"I  don't  know  about  that;  conditions  might 
still"  — 

"They'd  make  their  own  conditions." 

"That's  true.  It  all  comes  back  to  a  question 
of  human  thinking,  doesn't  it  ? " 

This  seemed  a  good  point  to  leave  off  the  dis 
cussion,  and  they  walked  on  mainly  in  silence, 
though  two  or  three  times  during  the  walk  CargiH 


252  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

broke  out  in  admiration.  "I  never  saw  a  woman 
grow  as  that  woman  has.  That's  the  kind  of  a 
woman  a  man  would  never  get  tired  of.  I've 
never  married,"  he  went  on,  with  a  sort  of  con 
fession,  "because  I  knew  perfectly  well  I'd  get 
sick  of  my  choice,  but"  — 

He  did  not  finish  —  it  was  hardly  necessary; 
perhaps  he  felt  he  had  gone  too  far.  They  said 
good-night  at  the  door  of  the  Windom,  and  Brad 
ley  went  on  up  the  avenue,  his  brain  whirling  with 
his  new  ideas  and  emotions. 

Ida  had  rushed  away  again  into  the  far  dis 
tance.  It  was  utter  foolishness  to  think  she 
could  care  for  him.  She  was  surrounded  with 
brilliant  and  wealthy  men,  while  he  was  a  poor 
young  lawyer  in  a  little  country  town.  He 
looked  back  upon  the  picture  of  himself  sitting 
by  her  side,  there  in  the  light  of  the  fire,  with 
deepening  bewilderment.  He  remembered  the 
strange  look  upon  her  face  as  she  rebuked  Car- 
gill.  He  wondered  if  she  did  not  care  for  him. 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  253 


XXII. 

THE  JUDGE  PLANS  A  NEW  CAMPAIGN. 

THE  first  three  or  four  weeks  of  legislative  life 
sickened  and  depressed  Bradley.  He  learned  in 
that  time,  not  only  to  despise,  but  to  loath  some 
of  the  legislators.  The  stench  of  corruption  got 
into  his  nostrils,  and  jovial  vice  passed  before  his 
eyes.  The  duplicity,  the  monumental  hypocrisy, 
of  some  of  the  leaders  of  legislation  made  him 
despair  of  humankind  and  to  doubt  the  stability 
of  the  republic. 

He  was  naturally  a  pure-minded,  simple-hearted 
man,  and  when  one  of  the  leaders  of  the  moral 
party  of  his  State  was  dragged  out  of  a  low  resort, 
drunk  and  disorderly,  in  company  with  a  leader  of 
the  Senate,  his  heart  failed  him.  He  was  ready 
to  resign  and  go  home. 

Trades  among  the  committees  came  obscurely 
to  his  ears ;  hints  of  jobs,  getting  each  day  more 
definite,  reached  him.  Railway  lobbyists  swarmed 


254  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

about  and  began  to  lay  their  cajoling,  persuasive 
hands  upon  members ;  and  he  could  not  laugh 
when  the  newspaper  said,  for  a  joke,  that  the 
absent-minded  speaker  called  the  House  to  order 
one  morning  by  saying  :  "Agents  of  the  K.  C. 
&  Q.  will  please  be  in  order."  It  seemed  too 
near  the  simple  fact  to  be  funny.  The  School 
Book  Lobby,  the  University  Lobby,  the  Armour 
Lobby,  each  had  its  turn  with  him,  through  its 
smooth,  convincing  agent. 

He  reached  his  lowest  deep  one  night  after  a 
conversation  with  Lloyd  Smith,  an  ex-clerk,  and  a 
couple  of  young  fellows  who  called  upon  him  at 
his  room.  Lloyd  noticed  his  gloomy  face,  and 
asked  what  the  trouble  was.  He  told  them 
frankly  that  he  was  disgusted. 

"Oh,  you'll  get  used  to  it!"  the  ex-clerk  said. 
"When  I  first  went  into  the  House,  I  believed  in 
honesty  and  sincerity,  like  yourself;  but  I  came 
out  of  my  term  of  office  knowing  the  whole  gang 
to  be  thieves.  My  experience  taught  me  that 
legislators  in  America  think  it's  a  Christian  virtue 
to  break  into  the  government  treasury." 

The  others  broke  out  laughing,  believing  him 
to  be  joking ;  but  there  was  a  ferocious  look  on 
his  face,  and  Bradley  felt  that  he  might  be  mis 
taken,  but  he  was  not  joking. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  255 

"They  stole  stationery,  spittoons,  waste  bask 
ets,  by  God !  They  stole  everything  that  was 
loose,  and  at  the  end  of  the  term,  they  seemed  to 
be  looking  around  unsatisfied,  and  I  told  'em  there 
was  just  one  thing  left  —  the  gold  leaf  on  the 
dome." 

The  others  roared  with  laughter,  and  Bradley 
was  forced  to  join  in.  But  the  face  of  the  ex-clerk 
did  not  lose  its  dark  intensity. 

"Take  salary  grabbing.  Why!  they  wanted 
me  to  certify  to  their  demands  for  Sunday  pay 
for  themselves  and  their  clerks,  and  I  refused, 
and  they  were  wild.  I'm  not  an  angel  nor  a 
Christian  man,  but  I  won't  sign  my  name  to  a 
lie,  and  blamed  if  they  didn't  pass  the  order  with 
out  my  signature !  Yes,  sir ;  it's  there  on  the 
record. 

"Take  nepotism.  The  members  bring  their 
wives  and  daughters  down  here,  put  them  in  as 
pages  and  clerks,  or  divide  the  proceeds  when 
they  have  no  relatives.  Every  device,  every 
imaginable  chicanery,  every  possible  scheme  to 
break  into  the  State  money  box,  is  legitimate  in 
their  eyes,  and  worthy  of  being  patented.  Public 
money  is  fair  game;  and  yet,"  he  said,  with  a 
change  of  manner,  "we  have  the  fairest,  purest 
and  most  honorable  legislators,  take  it  as  a  whole, 


256  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

that  there  is  in  the  United  States,  because  our 
State  is  rural,  and  we're  comparatively  free  from 
liquor.  Our  legislature  is  a  Sunday  School,  com 
pared  to  the  leprous  rascals  that  swarm  about  the 
Capitol  at  Albany  or  Springfield." 

"What  is  the  cure?"  asked  Bradley,  whose 
mind  had  been  busy  with  the  problem. 

"  God  Almighty  !  there  is  no  cure,  except  the 
abolition  of  government.  Government  means  that 
kind  of  thing.  Look  at  it !  Here  we  enthrone 
the  hungry,  vicious,  uneducated  mob  of  incapa- 
bles,  and  then  wonder  why  they  steal,  and  gorge 
and  riot  like  satyrs.  The  wonder  is  they  don't 
scrape  the  paint  off  the  walls." 

"  Oh,  you  go  too  far ;  a  legislator  wouldn't 
steal  a  spittoon." 

"  No,  but  the  fellow  he  recommends  for  clerk 
ship  does." 

"  My  idea  is  that  there  are  very  few  men  who 
take  money." 

"I  admit  that,  but  they'll  all  trade  their  job 
for  another  job.  Honesty  is  impossible.  The 
Angel  Gabriel  would  become  a  boocller  under 
our  system  of  government.  The  cure  is  to  abol 
ish  government." 

This  conclusion,  impotent  to  Bradley,  was  prac 
tically  all  the  savage  critic  had  to  offer.  Either 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  257 

go  back  to  despotism  or  go  ahead  to  no  govern 
ment  at  all. 

After  they  went  out,  Bradley  sat  down  and 
wrote  a  letter  to  Judge  Brown,  embodying  the 
main  part  of  this  conversation:  "It's  enough  to 
make  a  man  curse  his  country  and  his  God  to  see 
how  things  run,"  he  said,  at  the  end  of  writing  out 
the  ex-clerk's  terrible  indictment.  "I  feel  that 
he  is  right.  I'm  ready  to  resign,  and  go  home, 
and  never  go  into  politics  again.  The  whole 
thing  is  rotten  to  the  bottom." 

But  as  the  weeks  wore  on,  he  found  that  the 
indictment  was  only  true  of  a  certain  minority, 
but  it  was  terribly  true  of  them ;  but  down  under 
the  half-dozen  corruptible  agents,  under  the  roar 
of  their  voices,  there  were  many  others  speaking 
for  truth  and  purity.  The  obscure  mass  meant  to 
be  just  and  honest.  They  were  good  fathers  and 
brothers,  and  yet  they  were  forced  to  bear  the 
odium  that  fell  on  the  whole  legislature  whenever 
the  miscreant  minority  rolled  in  the  mire  and 
walked  the  public  streets. 

There  was  one  count,  however,  that  remained 
good  against  nearly  all  of  the  legislators :  they 
seemed  to  lack  conscience  as  regards  public 
money.  Bradley  remembered  that  this  dishonesty 
extended  down-  to  the  matter  of  working  on  the 


253  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE, 

roads  in  the  country.  He  remembered  that  every 
man  esteemed  it  a  virtue  to  be  lazy,  and  to  do  as 
little  for  a  day's  pay  as  possible,  because  it  "  came 
out  of  the  town."  He  was  forced  to  admit  that 
this  was  the  most  characteristic  American  crime. 
To  rob  the  commonwealth  was  a  joke. 

He  ended  by  philosophizing  upon  it  with  the 
Judge,  who  came  down  in  late  February  to  attend 
the  session  during  the  great  railway  fight. 

The  Judge  put  his  heels  on  the  window  sill,  and 
folded  his  arms  over  the  problem. 

"Well,  now,  this  thing  must  be  looked  at  from 
another  standpoint.  The  power  of  redress  is 
with  the  voter.  If  the  voter  is  a  boodler,  he 
will  countenance  boodling.  Here  is  the  mission 
of  our  party,"  he  said,  with  the  zeal  of  an  old- 
fashioned  Democrat,  "to  come  in  here  and  edu 
cate  the  common  man  to  be  an  honest  man.  We 
have  got  a  duty  to  perform.  Now,  we  mustn't 
talk  of  resigning  or  going  out  of  politics.  We've 
got  to  stay  right  in  the  lump,  and  help  leaven  it. 
It  will  only  make  things  worse  if  we  leave  it." 
The  Judge  had  grown  into  the  habit  of  speaking 
of  Bradley  as  if  he  were  a  partner. 

Bradley,  going  about  with  him  on  the  street, 
suddenly  discovered  that  the  Judge's  hat  was  just 
a  shade  too  wide  in  the  brim,  and  his  coat  a  lit- 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  259 

tie  bit  frayed  around  the  button-holes.  He  had 
never  noticed  before  that  the  Judge  was  a  little 
old-fashioned  in  his  manners.  No  thought  of 
being  ashamed  of  him  came  into  his  mind,  but  it 
gave  him  a  curious  sensation  when  they  entered  a 
car  together  for  the  first  time,  and  he  discovered 
that  the  Judge  was  a  type. 

When  Bradley  made  his  great  speech  on  the 
railroad  question,  arraigning  monopoly,  the  Judge 
had  a  special  arrangement  with  a  stenographer. 
He  was  going  to  have  that  speech  in  pamphlet 
form  to  distribute,  if  it  took  a  leg.  He  was 
already  planning  a  congressional  campaign. 

Ida  sat  in  the  balcony  on  the  day  he  spoke  for 
woman's  suffrage,  and  he  could  not  resist  the 
temptation  of  looking  up  there  as  he  spoke. 
Everything  combined  to  give  great  effect  to  his 
speech.  It  was  late  in  the  afternoon  and  the 
western  sun  thrust  bars  of  light  across  the  dim 
chamber  which  the  fresh  young  voice  of  the 
speaker  had  hushed  into  silence.  Ida  had  sent  a 
bunch  of  flowers  to  his  desk  and  upon  that  bou 
quet  the  intrusive  sun-ray  fell,  like  something 
wild  that  loved  the  rose,  but  as  the  speaker  went 
on  it  clambered  up  his  stalwart  side  and  rested  at 
last  upon  his  head  as  though  to  crown  him  with 
victory. 


260  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

But  defeat  came  as  usual.  The  legislators  saw 
nothing  in  the  sun-ray  except  a  result  of  negli 
gence  on  the  part  of  the  door-keeper.  They  all 
cheered  the  speech,  but  a  majority  tabled  the 
matter  as  usual.  The  galleries  cheered  and  the 
women  swarmed  about  the  young  champion,  Ida 
among  them.  Her  hand-shake  and  smile  was  his 
greatest  reward. 

"Come  and  see  me,"  she  said.  "I  want  to 
thank  you." 

The  Judge  was  immensely  proud  of  him.  "A 
great  speech,  Brad ;  if  I  wasn't  so  old-fashioned 
and  set  —  you'd  have  converted  me.  In  private 
I  admit  all  you  say,  but  it  ain't  policy  for  me  to 
advocate  it  just  now." 

"  Policy  !  I'm  sick  of  policy  !  "  cried  Bradley. 
"Let's  try  being  right  awhile." 

The  Judge  changed  the  subject.  He  told  the 
members  at  the  boarding-house  that  it  wouldn't 
hurt  Bradley's  chances.  "  People  won't  down  a 
man  on  that  point  any  more." 

"  Perhaps  not  in  your  county,  but  I  don't  want 
to  experiment  down  in  my  county,"  said  Major 
Root,  of  Macintosh. 

"I  don't  believe  the  people  of  Iowa  will 
down  any  man  for  stating  what  he  believes  is 
right." 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  261 

"Don't  bet  too  high  on  that,"  said  the  Major  in 
final  reply. 

The  Judge  dined  with  Bradley  at  the  dining- 
room  in  the  little  cottage,  and  it  gave  Bradley 
great  satisfaction  to  see  that  he  used  his  fork 
more  gracefully  than  the  Supreme  judge,  who  sat 
beside  him,  and  better  than  the  senator,  who  sat 
opposite.  They  had  a  most  delightful  time  in 
talking  over  old  legal  friends,  and  the  Judge  was 
beaming  as  he  came  to  pudding.  He  assured 
them  all  that  the  Honorable  Talcott  would  be 
heard  on  the  floor  of  Congress. 

"We're  the  winning  party  now,"  he  said. 
"We're  the  party  of  the  future." 

The  others  laughed  good  naturedly.  "  Don't  be 
too  certain  of  that."  They  all  rose.  "You  sur 
prised  us  sleeping  on  our  arms,"  the  general  said, 
"but  we're  awake  now,  and  we've  got  pickets  out." 

The  Judge  enjoyed  his  visit  very  much,  and 
only  once  did  he  present  himself  to  Bradley  with 
a  suspicious  heaviness  in  his  speech.  He  had 
reformed  entirely  since  he  had  adopted  a  son,  he 
explained  to  his  old  cronies. 

On  the  day  when  the  Judge  was  to  return,  as 
they  walked  down  to  the  train  together,  he  said, 
"Well,  Brad,  we'll  go  right  into  the  congressional 
campaign." 


262  A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

"  I  don't  believe  we'd  better  do  that,  Judge." 

"Why  not?" 

"  Well,  I  could  not  be  elected  —  that's  one 
thing." 

The  Judge  allowed  an  impressive  silence  to  in 
tervene. 

"  Why  not  ?  I  tell  you,  young  man,  they're  on 
the  run.  We  can  put  you  through.  You've  made 
a  strong  impression  down  here." 

"  I  don't  believe  I  want  to  be  put  through.  I'm 
sick  of  it.  I  don't  believe  I'm  a  politician.  I'm 
sick  all  through  with  the  whole  cursed  business.  I 
never'd  be  here  only  for  you,  pulling  wires.  I 
can't  pull  wires." 

"  You  needn't  pull  wires.  I'll  do  that.  You 
talk,  and  that's  what  put  you  here,  and  it'll  put 
you  in  Congress." 

Bradley  was  in  a  bad  mood. 

"  What's  the  good  of  my  going  there  ?  I  can't 
do  anything.  I've  done  nothing  here." 

"  Yes,  y'  have.  You've  been  right  on  the  rail 
road  question,  on  the  oleo  question,  and  the  bank 
question.  It's  going  to  count.  That  speech  of 
yours,  yesterday,  I'm  going  to  send  broadcast  in 
Rock  County.  The  district  convention  will  meet 
in  June  early.  Foster  will  pave  the  way  for  your 
nomination,  by  saying  Rock  County  should  have 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  263 

a  congressman.  We'll  go  into  the  convention 
with  a  clear  two-thirds  majority,  and  then  declare 
your  nomination  unanimous.  You  see,  your  youth 
will  be  in  your  favor.  Your  election  will  follow, 
sure.  The  only  fight  will  be  in  the  convention." 

"  Looks  like  spring,  to-day,"  Bradley  said.  It 
was  his  way  of  closing  an  argument. 

"Well,  good-by.  You'll  find  the  whole  pot 
boiling  when  you  come  home,"  the  Judge  said,  as 
the  train  started. 

As  February  drew  on  and  the  snow  fled,  the 
earth-longing  got  hold  upon  Bradley.  It  was 
almost  seed  time,  with  its  warm,  mellow  soil,  its 
sweeping  flights  of  prairie  pigeons,  its  innumerable 
swarms  of  tiny  clamorous  sparrows,  its  whistling 
plovers,  and  its  passing  wild  fowl.  The  thought 
came  to  him  there,  for  the  first  time,  that  nature 
was  not  malignant  nor  hard ;  that  life  on  a  farm 
might  be  the  most  beautiful  and  joyous  life  in 
the  world.  The  meaning  of  Ida's  words  at  last 
took  definite  and  individual  shape  in  his  mind. 
He  had  assimilated  them  now. 

Bradley  gave  himself  up  to  the  Judge's  plans. 
He  went  home  in  April  with  eagerness  and  with 
reluctance.  He  was  eager  to  escape  the  smoke 

of  the  city  and  reluctant  to  leave  behind  him  all 
18 


264  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

chance  to  see  Ida.  This  feeling  of  hungry  disap 
pointment  dominated  him  during  his  day's  ride. 
He  had  seen  her  but  twice  during  his  stay  in  Des 
Moines,  and  now  —  when  would  he  see  her  again? 
This  terrible  depression  and  sharp  pain  wore 
away  a  little  by  the  time  he  reached  home,  and 
the  active  campaign  which  followed  helped  him  to 
bear  it.  He  still  wrote  to  her,  and  she  replied 
without  either  encouragement  and  without  expli 
cit  displeasure.  The  campaign  was  really  the 
Judge's  fight.  Bradley  was  his  field  officer. 
Victory  in  the  convention  only  foreshadowed  the 
sweeping  victory  in  October.  He  resigned  as 
legislator,  to  become  a  congressman. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  265 


XXIII. 

ON    TO    WASHINGTON. 

IN  the  west  (as  in  rural  America  anywhere), 
the  three  types  of  great  men  in  the  peoples'  eyes 
are  the  soldier,  the  politician  and  the  minister. 
The  whole  people  appear  to  revere  the  great 
soldier,  the  men  admire  the  successful  politician, 
and  the  women  bow  down  before  the  noted 
preacher. 

These  classes  of  hero-worshipers  melt  into  each 
other,  of  course,  but  broadly  they  may  be  said  to 
separately  exist.  In  colonial  days  the  minister 
came  first,  the  soldier  second,  the  politician  last. 
Since  the  revolution  the  soldier  has  been  the  first 
figure  in  the  triumvirate,  and  in  these  later  times 
the  politician  and  his  organ  of  voice  the  news 
paper  have  placed  the  preacher  last. 

And  there  is  something  wholesome  in  such  an 
atmosphere,  the  atmosphere  of  the  West,  at  least 


266  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

by  contrast.  The  worship  of  political  success, 
low  as  it  may  seem,  is  less  deplorable  than  the 
worship  of  wealth,  which  is  already  weakening 
the  hold  of  the  middle-class  Eastern  man  upon 
the  American  idea.  In  the  West  mere  wealth 
does  not  carry  assurance  of  respect,  much  less 
can  it  demand  subservience. 

Bradley  never  dreamed  of  getting  rich,  but 
under  Radbourn  and  the  Judge  he  had  developed 
a  growing  love  for  the  orator's  dominion.  He 
hungered  to  lead  men.  Notwithstanding  his  fits 
of  disgust  and  bitterness  he  loved  to  be  a  part  of 
the  political  life  of  his  time.  It  had  a  powerful 
fascination  for  him.  The  deference  which  his  old 
friends  and  neighbors  paid  him  as  things  due  a 
rising  young  man,  pleased  him. 

He  looked  now  to  Washington,  and  it  fired  his 
imagination  to  think  of  sitting  in  the  hall  where 
the  mighty  legislators  of  generations  now  dead 
had  voiced  their  epoch-marking  thoughts.  It 
amazed  the  Judge  to  see  how  the  wings  of  his 
young  eagle  expanded.  The  transformation  from 
a  farmer's  hired  man  to  a  national  representative 
appealed  to  him  as  characteristically  American, 
and  he  urged  Bradley  to  do  his  best. 

The  election  which  the  young  orator  expected 
to  be  another  moment  of  great  interest  really 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  267 

came  as  a  matter-of-fact  ending  to  a  long  and  tri 
umphant  canvass.  He  had  held  victory  in  his 
hand  until  she  was  tamed.  The  election  sim 
ply  confirmed  the  universal  prophecy.  He  was 
elected,  and  while  the  Democrats  went  wild  with 
joy,  Bradley  slept  quietly  in  his  bed  at  home  — 
while  the  brass  band  played  itself  quiescent  under 
his  window. 

Now  he  fixed  his  eyes  on  Washington  as  an 
actuality.  It  was  a  long  time  before  his  term 
began,  and  at  the  advice  of  Judge  Brown  and 
others  he  packed  his  trunk  in  January  to  go  on 
and  look  around  a  little  in  the  usual  way  of  new 
members.  He  went  alone,  the  Judge  couldn't 
spare  the  time. 

The  ride  from  Chicago  to  Washington  was  an 
epic  to  him.  It  was  his  next  great  departure,  his 
entrance  into  another  widening  circle  of  thinking. 
He  had  never  seen  a  mountain  before;  and  the 
wild,  plunging  ride  among  the  Alleghany  Mount 
ains  was  magnificent.  He  sat  for  hours  at  a  time 
looking  out  of  the  window,  while  the  train,  drawn 
by  its  two  tremendous  engines,  crawled  toward 
the  summit.  He  saw  the  river  drop  deeper  and 
deeper,  and  get  whiter  and  wilder;  and  then 
came  the  wooded  level  of  the  summit,  and  then 
began  the  descent. 


268  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

While  the  reeling  train  alternately  flung  him  to 
the  window  and  against  the  seat,  he  gazed  out  at 
the  wheeling  peaks,  the  snow-laden  pines,  and  the 
mighty  gorges,  through  which  the  icy  river  ran, 
green  as  grass  in  its  quiet  eddies.  On  every  side 
were  wild  hillsides  meshed  with  fallen  trees,  and 
each  new  vista  contained  its  distant  peak.  It 
was  the  realization  of  his  imagination  of  the 
Alleghanies. 

As  the  train  swooped  round  its  curves,  drop 
ping  lower  and  lower,  the  valley  broadened  out, 
and  the  great  mountains  moved  away  into  ampler 
distances.  The  river  ran  in  a  wide  and  sinuous 
band  to  the  east  and  the  south.  He  realized  it  to 
be  the  Potomac,  whose  very  name  is  history.  He 
began  to  look  ahead  to  seeing  Harper's  Ferry, 
and  in  the  nearing  distance  was  Washington  ! 

He  had  the  Western  man's  intensity  of  feeling 
for  Washington.  To  him  it  was  the  centre  of 
American  life,  because  he  supposed  the  laws  were 
made  there.  The  Western  man  knows  Boston  as 
the  centre  of  art,  which  he  affects  to  despise,  and 
New  York  appeals  to  him  as  the  home  of  the 
millionaire,  of  the  money-lender;  but  in  Wash 
ington  he  recognizes  the  great  nerve  centre  of 
national  life.  It  is  the  political  ganglion  of  the 
body  politic.  It  appeals  to  the  romantic  in  him 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  269 

as  well.  It  is  historical ;  it  is  the  city  that  makes 
history. 

Slowly  the  night  fell.  yA-fter  leaving  Harper's 
Ferry  the  outside  world  vanished,  and  when  the 
brakeman  called  "Washington,"  it  was  nearly 
eight  o'clock  of  a  damp,  chilly  night.  He  was  so 
eager  to  see  the  Capitol,  which  the  kindly  fat 
man  behind  him  had  assured  him  was  but  a  few 
steps  away  from  the  station,  that  he  took  his 
valise  in  his  hand,  and  started  directly  for  the 
dome,  which  a  darkey  with  a  push-cart,  pointed 
out  to  him  with  oppressive  courtesy. 

There  was  an  all-pervasive,  impalpable,  blue- 
gray  mist  in  the  air,  cold  and  translucent ;  and 
when  he  came  to  the  foot  of  the  grounds,  and 
faced  the  western  front  of  the  Capitol  building, 
he  drew  a  deep  breath  of  delight.  It  thrilled 
him.  There  it  loomed  in  the  misty,  winter  night, 
the  mightiest  building  on  the  continent,  blue- 
white,  sharply  outlined,  massive  as  a  mountain, 
yet  seemingly  as  light  as  a  winter  cloud.  Weigh 
ing  myriads  of  tons,  it  seemed  quite  as  insubstan 
tial  as  the  mist  which  transfigured  it.  Against 
the  cold-white  of  its  marble,  and  out  of  the  gray- 
white  enveloping  mist,  bloomed  the  warm  light  of 
lamps,  like  vast  lilies  with  hearts  of  fire  and  halos 
of  faint  light. 


270  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

He  stood  for  a  long  time  looking  upon  it,  mus 
ing  upon  its  historic  associations.  Around  him 
he  heard  the  grinding  wheels,  the  click  of  the 
horses'  hoofs  upon  the  asphalt  pavement,  and 
heard  the  shouts  of  drivers.  Somewhere  near 
him  water  was  falling  with  a  musical  sound  in  a 
subterranean  sluiceway.  At  last  he  came  to  him 
self  with  a  start,  and  found  his  arm  aching  with 
the  fatigue  of  his  heavy  valise.  He  struck  off 
down  the  avenue.  It  seemed  to  swarm  with  col 
ored  people.  They  were  selling  papers,  calling 
with  musical,  bell-like  voices  — 

"Evenin'  Sty-ah  !  "     "Evenin'  Sty-ah  !  " 

Horse  cars  tinkled  along,  and  a  peculiar  form 
of  elongated  'bus,  with  the  word  "Carette"  painted 
upon  it,  rolled  along  noiselessly  over  the  asphalt 
pavement.  An  old  man  in  business  dress,  with 
rather  aristocratic  side-whiskers,  came  toward 
him,  walking  briskly  through  the  crowd,  an  open 
hand-bag  swung  around  his  neck ;  and  as  he 
walked  he  chanted  a  peculiar  cry  — 

"  Doc-tor  Ferguson's,  selly-brated,  double  X, 
Philadelphia  cough-drops,  for  coughs  and  colds, 
sore  throat  or  hoarseness ;  five  cents  a  package." 

Innumerable  signs  invited  him  to  "meals  at  15 
and  25  cts."  "Rolls  and  French  drip  coffee,  10 
cts."  "Oysters  in  every  style,"  etc. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  271 

The  oyster  saloons  were,  in  general,  very 
attractive  to  him,  as  a  Western  man,  but  specific 
ally  he  did  not  like  the  looks  of  the  places  in 
which  they  were  served.  He  came  at  last  to  a 
place  which  seemed  clean  and  free  from  a  bar, 
and  ventured  to  call  for  a  twenty-five  cent  stew. 

After  eating  this,  he  again  took  his  way  to  the 
street,  and  walked  along,  looking  for  a  moderate- 
priced  hotel.  He  did  not  think  of  going  to  a 
hotel  that  charged  more  than  seventy-five  cents 
for  a  room.  He  came  at  length  to  quite  a 
decent-looking  place,  which  advertised  rooms  for 
fifty  cents  and  upwards.  He  registered  under 
the  clerk's  calm  misprision,  and  the  brown  and 
wonderfully  freckled  colored  boy  showed  him  to 
his  room. 

It  was  all  quite  familiar  to  him  —  this  hotel  to 
which  a  man  of  moderate  means  is  forced  to  go 
in  the  city.  The  clingy  walls  and  threadbare 
carpet  got  geometrically  shabbier  at  each  succeed 
ing  flight  of  stairs,  until  at  length  the  boy  ushered 
him  into  a  little  room  at  the  head  of  the  stairway. 
It  was  unwarmed  and  had  no  lock  on  the  door ; 
but  the  bed  was  clean,  and,  as  he  soon  found, 
very  comfortable. 


272  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 


XXIV. 
RADBOURN    SHOWS    BRADLEY    ABOUT    THE    CAPITAL. 

He  woke  in  the  morning  from  his  dreamless 
sleep  with  that  peculiar  familiar  sensation  of  not 
knowing  where  he  had  lain  down  the  night  before. 
There  was  something  boyish  in  the  soundness  of 
his  sleep.  He  heard  the  newsboys  calling  out 
side,  although  it  was  apparently  the  early  dawn. 
Their  voices  made  him  think  of  Des  Moines,  for 
the  reason  that  Des  Moines  was  the  only  city  in 
which  he  had  ever  heard  the  newsboys  cry.  He 
sprang  from  his  bed  at  the  thought  of  Radbourn. 
He  would  hunt  him  up  at  once !  He  was  sur 
prised  to  find  that  it  had  snowed  during  the  night, 
and  everywhere  the  darkies  were  cleaning  the 
walks. 

Walking  thus  a  perfect  stranger  in  what  seemed 
to  him  a  great  city  he  did  not  feel  at  all  like  a 
rising  young  man.  In  fact  the  farther  he  got 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  273 

from  Rock  River  the  smaller  his  importance  grew, 
for  he  had  the  imagination  that  comprehends  rel 
ative  values. 

On  the  street  he  passed  a  window  where  a  big 
negro  was  cooking  griddle-cakes,  dressed  in.  a 
snowy  apron  and  a  paper  cap.  He  looked  so 
clean  and  wholesome  that  Bradley  decided  upon 
getting  his  breakfast  there,  and  going  in,  took 
his  seat  at  one  of  the  little  tables.  A  colored  boy 
came  up  briskly. 

"I'd  like  some  of  those  cakes,"  said  Bradley,  to 
whom  all  this  was  very  new. 

"Brown  the  wheats  !  "  yelled  the  boy,  and  added 
in  a  low  voice,  "Buckwheat  or  batter?" 

"Buckwheat,  I  guess." 

"Make  it  bucks!"  the  boy  yelled,  by  the  way 
of  correction,  and  asked  again  in  a  low  voice, 
"  Coffee  ? " 

"  If  you  please." 

"  One  up  light." 

While  Bradley  was  eating  his  cakes,  which  were 
excellent,  others  came  in,  and  the  waiters  dashed 
to  and  fro,  shouting  their  weird  orders. 

"Ham  and,  two  up  coff,  a  pair,  boot-leg,  white 
wings." 

Bradley  had  a  curiosity  to  see  what  this  order 
would  bring  forth,  and,  watching  carefully,  found 


274  ^   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

that  it  secured  ham  and  eggs,  two  cups  of  coffee, 
a  beefsteak,  and  an  omelet.  He  was  deeply  inter 
ested  in  the  discovery. 

He  recognized  the  most  of  the  men  around  him 
as  Western  or  Southern  types.  Many  of  them 
had  chin  whiskers  and  wore  soft  crush  hats.  The 
negroes  interested  and  fascinated  him  :  they  were 
so  grimly  ugly  of  face,  and  yet  apparently  so  good 
natured  and  light  hearted. 

On  the  street  again  he  saw  the  same  types  of 
men.  He  wondered  if  they  were  not  his  col 
leagues.  As  for  them,  they  probably  took  him  for 
a  Boston  or  New  York  man,  with  his  full  brown 
beard  and  clear  complexion. 

The  negroes  attracted  his  eyes  constantly. 
They  drifted  along  the  street  apparently  aimlessly, 
many  of  them.  Their  faces  were  mostly  smil 
ing,  but  in  a  meaningless  way,  as  if  it  were  a 
habit.  He  soon  found  that  they  were  swift  to 
struggle  for  a  chance  to  work.  They  asked  to 
carry  his  valise,  to  black  his  boots ;  the  newsboys 
ran  by  his  side,  in  their  eagerness  to  sell. 

As  he  went  along,  he  noticed  the  very  large 
number  of  "  Rooms  to  Let,"  and  the  equally  large 
number  of  signs  of  "  Meals,  Fifteen  and  Twenty- 
five  Cents."  Evidently  there  would  be  no  trouble 
in  finding  a  place  to  board. 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  275 

As  he  entered  Radbourn's  office,  he  saw  a 
young  lady  seated  at  a  desk,  manipulating  a  type 
writer.  She  had  the  ends  of  a  forked  rubber  tube 
hung  in  her  ears,  and  did  not  see  Bradley.  He 
observed  that  the  tube  connected  with  a  sewing- 
machine-like  table  and  a  swiftly  revolving  little 
cylinder,  which  he  recognized  as  a  phonograph. 
At  the  window  sat  Radbourn,  talking  in  a  meas 
ured,  monotonous  voice  into  the  mouthpiece  of  a 
large  flexible  tube,  which  connected  with  another 
phonograph.  His  back  was  toward  Bradley,  and 
he  stood  for  some  time  looking  at  the  curious 
scene  and  listening  to  Radbourn's  talk. 

"  Congress  brings  to  Washington  a  fulness  of 
life  which  no  one  can  understand  who  has  not 
spent  the  summer  here,"  Radbourn  went  on,  in  a 
slow,  measured  voice,  his  lips  close  to  the  bell- 
like  opening  of  the  tube.  It  had  a  ludicrous 
effect  upon  Bradley  —  like  a  person  talking  to 
himself. 

"The  city  may  be  said  to  die,  when  Congress 
adjourns.  Its  life  is  political,  and  when  its  polit 
ical  motor  ceases  to  move  the  city  lies  sprawled 
out  like  a  dead  thing.  Its  streets  are  painfully 
quiet.  Its  street  cars  shuttle  to  and  fro  under 
the  burning  sun,  and  its  teamsters  loaf  about  the 
corners  drowsily.  The  store-keepers  keep  shop, 


276  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

of  course,  but  they  open  lazily  of  a  morning  and 
close  early  at  night.  The  whole  city  yawns  and 
rests  and  longs  for  the  coming  of  the  autumn  and 
Congress. 

"  It  is  amusing  and  amazing  to  see  it  begin  to 
wake  up  at  the  beginning  of  the  session.  Then 
begins  the  scramble  of  the  hotels  and  boarding- 
houses  to  secure  members  of  Congress.  Then 
begins  "  — 

The  girl  suddenly  saw  Bradley  standing  there, 
and  called  out,  "  Some  one  to  see  you,  Mr. 
Radbourn ! " 

Radbourn  stopped  the  cylinder,  and  turned. 

"  Ah,  how  do  you  do,"  he  said,  as  if  greeting  a 
stranger. 

Bradley  smiled  in  reply,  knowing  that  Rad 
bourn  did  not  recognize  him.  "I'm  very  well.  I 
don't  suppose  you  remember  me,  but  I'm  Brad 
Talcott." 

Radbourn  rose  with  great  cordiality.  "Well, 
well,  I'm  glad  to  see  you,"  he  said,  his  sombre 
face  relaxing  in  a  smile,  as  he  seized  Bradley  by 
the  hand.  "Sit  down,  sit  down.  I'm  glad  to  see 
an  old  class-mate." 

"Don't  let  me  interrupt  your  work.  I  was 
interested  in  hearing  you  talk  into  that  thing 
there." 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  277 

"Oh,  yes,  I  was  just  getting  off  my  syndicate 
letter  for  this  week.  Sit  down  and  talk ;  you 
don't  interrupt  me  at  all.  Now  tell  me  all  about 
yourself.  Of  course  I  have  heard  of  your  suc 
cess,  State  Legislature  and  Congress  and  all  that, 
but  I  would  like  to  have  you  tell  me  all  about  it." 

"There  aint  very  much  to  tell.  I  had  very  lit 
tle  to  do  with  it,"  said  Bradley. 

They  took  seats  near  the  window,  looking  out 
upon  the  square,  and  upon  the  vast,  squat,  Egyp 
tian,  tomb-like  structure,  that  rose  out  of  the 
centre  of  the  smooth,  snow-covered  plat,  across 
which  the  sun  streamed  with  vivid  white  radiance. 

There  was  a  little  pause  after  they  sat  down. 
Radbourn  leaned  his  head  on  his  arm,  and  studied 
Bradley  earnestly.  He  seemed  older  and  more 
bitter  than  Bradley  expected  to  see  him.  He 
asked  of  the  old  friends  in  a  slow  way,  as  if  one 
name  called  up  another  in  a  slowly  moving  chain 
of  association.  They  talked  on  for  an  hour  thus, 
sitting  in  the  same  position.  At  last  Radbourn 
said  — 

"How  far  I've  got  from  all  those  scenes  and 
people !  and  yet  the  memory  of  that  little  old 
town  and  its  people  has  a  powerful  fascination. 
I  never'll  go  back,  of  course.  To  tell  the  truth,  I 
am  afraid  to  go  back;  it  would  drive  me  crazy. 


278  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

I  am  a  city  man  naturally.  I  am  gregarious.  I 
like  to  be  in  the  centre  of  things.  It'll  get  hold 
of  you,  too.  This  city  is  full  of  ruined  young 
men  and  women,  who  came  here  from  the  slow- 
moving  life  of  inland  towns  and  villages,  and, 
after  two  or  three  years  of  a  richer  life,  find  it 
impossible  to  go  back ;  and  here  they  are,  strug 
gling  along  on  forty-five  cents  a  day  at  hash- 
houses,  living  in  hall  bedrooms,  preferring  to  pick 
up  such  a  living,  at  all  kinds  of  jobs,  than  to  go 
back  home.  I'd  do  it  myself,  if  I  were"  — 

He  broke  off  suddenly,  and  looked  at  Bradley 
in  a  keen,  steady  way.  "And  so  your're  a  con 
gressman,  Talcott?  Well,  I'm  glad  of  your  suc 
cess,  because  it  shows  a  man  can  succeed  on  the 
right  lines  —  in  a  measure,  at  least." 

"Well,  I've  tried  to  live  up  to  most  of  your 
principles,"  smiled  Bradley.  "  I've  read  all  the 
things  you've  sent  me." 

"Well,  you're  the  wildest  and  most  dangerous 
lunatic  that  ever  got  into  Congress,"  Radbourn 
said,  gravely.  "Do  you  expect  to  talk  any  of 
that  stuff  on  the  floor?" 

"Well,  I  —  I  hoped  to  be  able  to  say  some 
thing  before  the  session  closes." 

"If  you  do,  it  will  be  a  miracle.  The  House  is 
under  the  rule  of  a  Republican  Czar,  and  men 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  279 

with  your  ideas  or  any  ideas  are  to  be  shut  out 
remorselessly.  Let  me  tell  you  something  right 
here ;  it  will  save  time  and  worry :  You  want  to 
know  the  Speaker,  cultivate  him.  He's  the  real 
power.  That's  the  reason  the  speakership  be 
comes  such  a  terrible  struggle.  It  decides  the 
most  tremendous  question.  In  his  hand  is  the 
appointing  of  committees,  which  should  be  chosen 
by  the  legislators  themselves.  The  power  of 
these  committees  is  unlimited,  you'll  find.  They 
can  smother  bills  of  the  utmost  importance.  The 
oretically  they  are  the  servants  of  the  House. 
Actually  they  are  its  autocrats." 

"I  didn't  realize  that." 

"I  don't  suppose  it  is  realized  by  the  people. 
This  appointing  of  the  committee  is  supposed  to 
save  time,  and  yet  the  speakership  contest  con 
sumes  weeks,  sometimes  months.  It  will  grow  in 
ferocity." 

"  Can't  something  be  done  ?  " 

"Try  and  see,"  he  said  rising.  "Well,  suppose 
we  got  out  and  walk  about  a  little.  I  infer  you're 
on  to  see  the  town.  Where  are  you  stopping  ? " 

Bradley  named  the  hotel  with  a  little  reluctance. 
He  knew  how  cheap  it  was ;  and  since  he  had  dis 
covered  that  congressmen  were  at  a  premium  in 
boarding-houses,  he  saw  that  he  must  get  more 
19 


280  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

sumptuous  quarters  than  he  had  hitherto  occupied. 
They  went  out  into  the  open  air  together.  The 
sun  was  very  brilliant  and  warm.  The  eaves  were 
running  briskly.  The  sky  was  gentle,  beautiful, 
and  spring-like.  The  fact  that  he  was  in  Wash 
ington  came  upon  Bradley  again,  as  he  saw  the 
soaring  dome  of  the  capitol  at  the  head  of  the 
avenue. 

"What  you  want  to  do  is  to  get  on  good  social 
terms  with  the  so-called  leaders,"  Radbourn  was 
saying.  "  Recognition  goes  by  favor  on  the  floor 
of  the  House.  We  might  go  up  to  the  capitol 
and  look  about,"  Radbourn  suggested. 

They  walked  up  the  steps  leading  to  the  west 
front  of  the  building.  Everywhere  the  untrodden 
snow  lay  white  and  level. 

"This  is  the  finest  part  of  the  whole  thing," 
Radbourn  remarked,  as  they  reached  the  level  of 
esplanade.  "It  has  more  beauty  and  simple 
majesty  than  the  main  building  itself,  or  any 
structure  in  the  city." 

It  was  magnificent.  Bradley  turned  and  looked 
at  it  right  and  left  with  admiring  eyes.  It 
gleamed  with  snow,  and  all  about  was  the  sound 
of  dripping  water,  and  in  the  distance  the  roll  of 
wheels  and  click  of  hoofs.  The  esplanade  was 
a  broad  walk  extending  the  entire  width  of  the 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  281 

building,  and  conforming  to  it.  It  was  bottomed 
with  marble  squares,  and  bordered  with  a  splen 
did  wall,  breast-high  on  one  side,  and  by  the 
final  terrace  running  to  the  basement  wall  on  the 
other.  Here  and  there  along  the  wall  gigantic 
brazen  pots  sat,  filled  with  evergreens,  whose 
color  seemed  to  have  gradually  dropped  down  and 
entered  into  the  marble  beneath  them.  The 
bronze  had  stained  with  rich,  dull  green  each  ped 
estal  and  irregular  sections  of  the  marble  wall 
itself. 

Below  them  the  city  was  outspread.  Radbourn 
pointed  out  the  Pension  Office,  the  White  House, 
the  Treasury,  and  other  principal  buildings  with 
a  searching  word  upon  their  architecture.  The 
monument,  he  evidently  considered,  required  no 
comment. 

As  they  entered  the  dome,  they  passed  a  group 
of  men  whose  brisk,  bluff  talk  and  peculiar  swag 
ger  indicated  their  character  —  legislators  from 
small  country  towns. 

"  Some  of  your  colleagues,"  Radbourn  said, 
indicating  them  with  his  thumb.  As  they  paused 
a  moment  in  the  centre  of  the  dome,  one  of  the 
group,  a  handsome  fellow  with  a  waxed  mustache 
and  hard,  black  eyes,  gave  a  stretching  gesture, 
and  said,  "  I'm  in  the  world  now." 


282  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

His  words  thrilled  Bradley  to  the  heart.  He 
was  in  the  world  now.  Des  Moines  and  its  cap- 
itol  were  dwarfed  and  overshadowed  by  this  great 
national  city,  to  which  all  roads  ran  like  veins  to 
a  mighty  heart.  He  lifted  his  shoulders  in  a 
deep  breath.  It  was  glorious  to  be  a  congress 
man,  but  still  more  glorious  to  be  a  citizen  of  the 
world. 

They  passed  through  the  corridors  in  upon  the 
house  floor,  which  swarmed  with  legislators,  lob 
byists,  pages,  newspaper  men  and  visitors.  Rad- 
bourn  led  the  way  down  to  the  open  space  before 
the  speaker's  desk,  and  together  they  turned  and 
swept  the  semi-circular  rows  of  seats. 

"  Everywhere  the  visitor  abounds,"  said  Rad- 
bourn.  "Western  and  Southern  men  predomi 
nate.  It's  surprising  what  deep  interest  the 
negro  takes  in  legislation,"  he  went  on,  lifting 
his  eyes  to  the  gallery,  which  was  black  with  their 
intent  and  solemn  faces.  "See  this  old  fellow 
with  his  hat  off  as  if  he  were  in  the  midst  of  a 
temple,"  he  said,  nodding  at  a  group  before  the 
speaker's  desk. 

Bradley  looked  at  the  poor,  bent,  meek,  old 
man  with  a  thrill  of  pity.  He  observed  that 
many  of  the  negroes  were  splashed  with  orange- 
colored  clay. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  283 

Members  began  to  take  their  seats  and  to  call 
pages  by  clapping  their  hands.  The  cloak-rooms 
and  barber-shop  resounded  with  laughter.  News 
paper  men  sauntered  by,  addressing  Radbourn 
and  asking  for  news.  And  here  and  there  others, 
like  Radbourn,  were  acting  as  guides  to  groups  of 
visitors. 

In  the  midst  of  the  growing  tumult  a  one- 
armed  man  entered  the  speaker's  desk  and  called 
out  in  snappy  tenor  — 

"  Gentlemen,  I  am  requested  by  the  door 
keeper  to  ask  all  persons  not  entitled  to  the  floor 
to  please  retire." 

Bradley  started,  but  Radbourn  said,  "  No  hurry, 
you  have  fifteen  minutes  yet.  As  a  member- 
elect  you  have  the  courtesy  of  the  floor  anyway. 
Do  you  want  to  meet  anybody  ? " 

"No,  I  guess  not.  I  just  want  to  look  on  for 
to-day." 

"Well,  we'll  go  up  in  the  gallery." 

Looking  down  upon  the  floor  and  its  increas 
ing  swarm  of  individuals,  Bradley  got  a  complete 
sense  of  its  vastness  and  its  complexity  and  noise. 

"  It  makes  the  Iowa  legislature  seem  like  a 
school-room,"  he  said  to  Radbourn. 

At  precisely  noon  the  gavel  fell  with  a  single 
sharp  stroke,  and  the  speaker  called  persuasively, 


284  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

"The  house  \\i\\please  be  in  order."  The  mem 
bers  rose  and  stood  reluctantly,  some  of  them 
sharpening  their  pencils,  others  reading  while  the 
chaplin  prayed  sonorously  with  many  oratorical 
cadences,  taking  in  all  the  departments  of  govern 
ment  in  the  swing  of  his  generous  benediction. 

Instantly  at  the  word  "  Amen,"  like  the  pop 
ping  of  a  cork,  the  tumult  burst  out  again. 
Hands  clapped,  laughter  flared  out,  desks  were 
slammed,  papers  were  rattled,  feet  pounded,  and 
the  brazen  monotonous  clanging  voice  of  the  clerk 
sounded  above  it  all  like  some  new  steam  calliope 
whose  sounds  were  words. 

"You  see  how  much  prayer  means  here,"  said 
Radbourn. 

A  good  deal  of  the  business  which  followed  was 
similar  in  character  to  the  proceedings  at  Des 
Moines.  Resolutions  were  passed  with  two  or 
three  aye  votes  and  no  noes  at  all,  while  the  rest 
of  the  members  looked  over  the  Record,  read  the 
morning  papers,  or  wrote  on  busily.  The  speaker 
declared  each  motion  carried  with  glib  voice. 

At  last  a  special  order  brought  up  an  unfin 
ished  debate  upon  some  matter,  and  the  five  min 
ute  rule  was  enforced. 

"You're  in  luck,"  said  Radbourn.  "The  whole 
procession  is  going  to  pass  before  you." 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  285 

As  the  debate  went  on  he  pointed  out  the  great 
men  whose  names  suggested  history  to  Bradley 
and  whose  actual  presence  amazed  him.  There 
was  Amos  B.  Tripp,  whom  Radbourn  said  re 
sembled  "a  Chinese  god" — immense,  featureless, 
bald,  with  a  pout  on  his  face  like  an  enormous 
baby.  The  "watch  dog  of  the  house,"  Major 
Hendricks,  was  tall,  thin,  with  the  voice  and  man 
ner  of  an  old  woman.  His  eyes  were  invisible, 
and  his  chin-beard  wagged  up  and  down  as  he 
shouted  in  high  tenor  his  inevitable  objection. 

An  old  man  with  abundant  hair,  blue-white 
under  the  perpendicular  light,  arose  at  the  back 
part  of  the  room,  making  a  fine  picture  outlined 
against  the  deep  red  screen.  His  manner  was 
courtly,  his  ruddy  face  pleasing,  his  voice  musical 
and  impassioned. 

"He's  the  dress  parade  orator  of  the  house," 
observed  Radbourn. 

"I  like  him,"  said  Bradley,  leaning  forward  to 
absorb  the  speaker's  torrent  of  impassioned  utter 
ance.  When  he  sat  down  the  members  applauded. 

Most  of  the  orators  conformed  to  types  familiar 
to  Bradley.  There  was  the  legal  type,  monoto 
nously  emphatic,  with  extended  forefinger,  which 
pointed,  threatened  and  delineated.  His  speak 
ing  wore  on  the  ear  like  a  saw-filing.  Then  there 


286  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

was  the  political  speaker,  the  stump  orator,  who 
was  full  of  well-worn  phrases,  who  could  not  men 
tion  the  price  of  wool  or  the  number  of  cotton 
bales  without  using  the  ferocious  throaty-snarl  of 
a  beast  of  prey. 

He  was  followed  by  the  clerical  type,  a  speaker 
who  used  the  most  mournful  cadences  in  correct 
ing  the  gentleman  on  his  left  as  to  the  number  of 
cotton  bales.  His  voice  and  manner  formed  a 
distinct  reflection  of  the  mournful  preacher,  and 
the  tune  of  his  high  voice  had  the  power  of  call 
ing  up  the  exact  phraseology  of  sermons  —  "Re 
pent,  my  lost  brother,  ere  it  be  too  late," 
"Prepare  for  the  last  great  day,  my  brother," 
while  he  actually  asserted  the  number  of  cotton 
bales  had  been  grossly  over-stated  by  the  gentle 
man  from  Alabama. 

On  going  down  the  stairs,  Radbourn  called  his 
attention  to  the  paintings,  hanging  here  and  there, 
which  he  called  "hideous  daubs"  with  the  reck 
less  presumption  of  a  born  realist  to  whom  alle 
gory  was  a  personal  affront.  Radbourn  showed 
him  about  the  city  as  much  as  he  could  spare 
time  to  do,  and  when  he  released  him,  Bradley 
went  back  to  the  capitol,  which  exercised  the  pro- 
foundest  fascination  upon  him. 

He  had  not  the  courage  to  go  back  to  the  pri- 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  287 

vate  gallery  into  which  Radbourn  had  penetrated, 
but  went  into  the  common  gallery,  which  was  fu-ll 
of  negroes,  unweariedly  listening  to  the  dry  and 
almost  unintelligible  speeches  below. 

He  sat  there  the  whole  afternoon  and  went 
back  to  his  hotel  meek  and  very  tired. 

Radbourn  introduced  him  to  a  few  of  the  mem 
bers  the  next  day.  It  was  evident  that  nobody 
cared  very  much  whether  he  had  been  elected  or 
not.  Each  man  had  his  own  affairs  to  look  after, 
and  greeted  him  with  a  flabby  hand-shake  and 
looked  at  him  with  cold  and  wandering  eyes.  It 
was  all  very  depressing. 

He  grew  nervous  over  the  expenses  which  he 
was  incurring,  although  he  constantly  referred 
himself  back  to  the  fact  that  he  was  a  Congress 
man,  at  a  salary  of  six  thousand  dollars.  His 
economy  was  too  deeply  ingrained  to  be  easily 
wiped  out.  He  seldom  got  into  a  street-car  that 
he  did  not  hold  a  mental  debate  with  himself  to 
justify  the  extravagance. 

He  went  about  a  good  deal  during  the  next  two 
or  three  days,  but  he  continued  at  the  cheap  hotel, 
where  he  was  obliged  to  keep  his  overcoat  on  in 
order  to  write  a  letter  or  read  a  newspaper.  He 
went  twice  to  the  theatre.  He  bought  a  dollar 
seat  the  first  time,  which  worried  him  all  through 


288  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

the  play,  and  he  did  penance  the  following  even 
ing  by  walking  the  twenty  blocks  (both  ways), 
and  by  taking  a  fifty-cent  seat.  He  figured  it  a 
clear  saving  of  sixty  cents.  He  really  enjoyed 
the  play  more  than  he  would  have  done  in  a  dollar 
seat  and  consoled  himself  with  the  reflection  that 
no  one  knew  he  was  a  Congressman,  anyway. 

He  told  Radbourn  at  the  station  that  he  had 
enjoyed  every  moment  of  his  stay.  As  the  train 
drew  out  he  looked  back  upon  the  city,  and  the 
great  dome  its  centre,  with  a  deep  feeling  of 
admiration,  almost  love.  It  had  seized  upon  him 
mightily.  He  had  only  to  shut  his  eyes  to  see 
again  that  majestic  pile  with  its  vast  rotundas,  its 
bewildering  corridors  and  its  tumultuous  repre 
sentative  hall.  Life  there  would  be  worth  while. 
He  began  to  calculate  how  long  it  would  be 
before  he  should  return.  It  seemed  a  long  while 
to  wait. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  289 


XXV. 

IDA    COMES    INTO    HIS    LIFE    AGAIN, 

AFTER  his  return  home  he  accepted  every  invi 
tation  to  speak,  because  that  relieved  the  tedium 
of  his  life  in  Rock  River.  He  took  an  active  part 
in  the  fall  campaign  in  county  politics,  and  he  de 
livered  the  Fourth  of  July  address  at  the  celebra 
tion  at  Rock  River  amid  the  usual  blare  of  bands 
and  bray  of  fakirs  and  ice-cream  vendors,  while 
the  small  boys  fired  off  crackers  in  perfect  obliv 
ion  of  anybody  but  themselves. 

It  was  magnificent  to  occupy  a  covered  carriage 
in  the  parade  and  to  sit  on  the  platform  as  the 
centre  of  interest,  and  to  rise  amid  cheers,  to 
address  the  citizens  of  the  United  States,  to  point 
to  cloud-capped  towering  peaks,  to  plant  the  stars 
and  stripes  upon  battlements  of  ancient  wrong, 
and  other  equally  patriotic  things. 

No  occasion   was   complete   now  without   him. 


290  A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

The  strawberry  festival  that  secured  his  presence 
felicitated  itself  upon  the  fact  and  always  insisted 
on  "just  a  few  words,  Mr.  Congressman." 

The  summer  passed  rather  better  than  he  had 
anticipated.  About  a  month  before  his  return 
to  Washington  he  received  a  letter  from  Ida  ask 
ing  him  to  be  present  at  a  suffrage  meeting  in 
Des  Moines,  and  he  accepted  the  invitation  with 
great  pleasure.  He  had  been  wondering  how  he 
could  see  her  again  without  making  the  journey 
for  that  purpose,  which  he  could  not  bring  himself 
to  do. 

It  was  a  soft,  hazy  October  day  and  the  ride  to 
Des  Moines  was  very  beautiful.  The  landscape 
seemed  to  be  in  drowse,  half-sleeping  and  half- 
waking.  The  jays  flew  from  amber  and  orange- 
colored  coverts  of  maples  and  oaks  across  the 
blue  haze  of  the  open,  and  quails  piped  from  the 
hazel-thickets.  Crows  flapped  lazily  across  the 
fields  where  the  ploughmen  were  at  work.  The 
threshing  machines  hummed  and  clattered  with  a 
lower,  quieter  note,  and  as  Bradley  looked  upon 
it  all,  the  wonder  of  his  release  from  the  toil  of 
reaping  and  threshing  and  ploughing  came  upon 
him  again. 

Ida  was  glad  to  see  him.  She  gave  him  her 
hand  in  a  frank,  strong  clasp. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  291 

"You'll  stay  to  tea  with  us,  of  course,"  she 
said.  "There  is  no  one  here  but  mother  and  I, 
and  we  can  talk  things  all  over.  This  is  my 
mother,"  she  said,  presenting  an  elderly  lady  with 
a  broad,  placid  face.  She  said  nothing  whatever 
during  his  stay,  but  listened  to  all  that  was  said 
with  unchanging  gravity.  It  was  plain  she  wor 
shipped  her  daughter,  and  never  questioned  what 
she  said. 

They  sat  down  at  the  table. 

"Mr.  Talcott,  this  is  Christine,"  said  Ida,  intro 
ducing  a  comely  Norwegian  girl  who  came  in  with 
the  tea.  "Christine  takes  care  of  mother  while 
I'm  away." 

"  Ay  tank  sometime  she  take  care  of  me," 
Christine  smilingly  replied. 

Avoiding  family  matters,  Ida  talked  on  general 
subjects  while  the  rest  listened.  She  over-esti 
mated  Bradley's  education,  his  reading,  but  he 
was  profoundly  thankful  for  it.  He  had  never 
heard  such  talk.  It  was  literature  to  him.  She 
spoke  with  such  fine  deliberation  and  such  choice 
of  words.  He  felt  its  grace  and  power  without 
understanding  it.  It  seemed  to  him  wonderful. 

"I  should  like  to  be  a  novelist,"  she  said. 
"I'd  like  to  treat  of  this  woman's  movement." 

"  Why  can't  you  do  it  ? "  he  asked. 


292  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

"I  lack  the  time,  the  freedom  from  other  inter 
ests.  But  if  I  could  be  a  novelist,  it  would  be  a 
novelist  of  life." 

He  never  remembered  all  that  she  said,  but  she 
made  an  impression  that  was  almost  despair  upon 
him  by  her  incidental  mention  of  books  that  he 
had  never  read,  and  of  authors  of  whom  he  had 
never  even  heard. 

They  walked  to  the  church  together  along  the 
side-walks  littered  with  fallen  leaves,  and  when 
they  entered  the  side  door  she  began  to  introduce 
him  to  the  ladies  who  swarmed  about  her  the 
moment  they  caught  sight  of  her.  Bradley  felt 
embarrassed  by  their  multiple  presence,  but  was 
proud  to  be  introduced  by  Ida.  They  moved  to 
the  platform.  He  had  never  spoken  at  such  a 
meeting  before  and  he  was  nervous.  He  spoke 
first  and  spoke  well,  but  he  would  have  done  bet 
ter  with  Ida's  face  before  him.  When  she  spoke 
he  sat  looking  up  at  the  beautiful  head  and  feel 
ing  rather  than  seeing  the  splendid  lines  of  her 
broad,  powerful  and  unconfined  waist.  The  per 
fume  of  her  dress  and  its  soft  rustle  as  she  moved 
to  and  fro  before  him  made  him  forget  her  words. 

Cargill  came  up  to  the  platform  after  the  speak 
ing  and  said  jocosely,  "Well,  Legislator,  you're 
getting  ahead.  You're  laying  a  foundation  for 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  293 

post-mortem  fame,  anyway.  I  hear  you've  been 
on  to  Congress." 

"Yes,  I  went  on  and  stayed  a  few  days." 

"  How'd  you  like  it  ? " 

"How  do  you  do,  Mr.  Cargill,"  said  Ida  at  his 
elbow.  "Aren't  you  out  of  place  here?" 

"Not  more  than  usual,"  replied  Cargill.  "I'm 
always  out  of  place." 

"  Do  you  know  Mr.  Birdsell  ? "  she  asked,  pre 
senting  a  powerful  young  man  with  a  singularly 
handsome  face.  He  had  clear  brown  eyes  and  a 
big,  graceful  mustache.  For  just  a  moment  as  he 
stood  beside  Ida,  Bradley  shivered  with  a  sudden 
suspicion  that  they  were  lovers. 

"  Mr.  Birdsell  happens  to  be  on  from  Musca- 
tene,"  Ida  explained,  "and  happened  in  to  see  a 
suffrage  meeting.  He's  trying  to  reconcile  him 
self  to  the  idea  of  woman's  emancipation." 

"He'll  find  a  sympathizer  in  me,"  put  in 
Cargill. 

Bradley  studied  Birdsell  with  round-eyed  steady 
stare.  He  was  a  superb  type  of  man.  It  gave 
Bradley  a  feeling  of  awkwardness  to  stand  beside 
him  and  a  consciousness  of  stupidity  to  listen  to 
their  banter,  but  Ida  dismissed  Cargill  and  Bird- 
sell  summarily  and  walked  home  with  Bradley. 
He  was  not  keenly  perceptive  enough  to  see  that 


294  A   SfOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

Ida  put  Birdsell  off  'with  a  brusqueness  that 
argued  a  perfect  understanding. 

They  walked  home  by  the  risen  moon  side  by 
side.  He  had  not  the  courage  to  take  her  arm 
and  she  did  not  offer  it.  He  referred  again  to 
Washington  and  she  asked  him  to  remember  the 
women  in  his  legislation. 

"I  don't  know  what  I'm  going  to  do  next,  but  I 
must  reach  the  farmer's  wives  again  as  I  did  in 
the  days  of  the  grange.  I  feel  for  them.  They 
are  to-day  the  most  terrible  proofs  of  man's  inhu 
manity.  My  heart  aches  for  them.  There  is  a 
new  farmer's  movement  struggling  forward,  the 
Alliance.  I'm  thinking  of  going  into  that  as  a 
lecturer.  Do  you  know  anything  about  it?" 

"No,  not  much." 

They  had  reached  the  gate,  and  they  stood 
there  like  lovers  in  the  cold,  clear  moonlight  just 
an  instant,  but  in  that  lingering  action  of  the 
woman  there  was  something  tender  which  Bradley 
seized  upon.  He  asked  again — 

"You'll  let  me  write  to  you  again,  won't 
you?" 

"Certainly.  I  shall  follow  your  career  with  the 
deepest  interest.  I  wish  you'd  think  of  this  alli 
ance  movement  and  advise  me  what  to  do.  Good- 
by."  She  extended  her  hand. 


A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  295 

"  Good-by,"  he  said,  and  his  voice  choked. 
When  he  turned  and  walked  away  Washington 
was  very  far  away  indeed  and  political  honors 
cheap  as  dust 


20 


296  •        A    SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 


XXVI. 

CONGRESSIONAL    LIFE. 

HE  found  Washington  less  lonely  for  him  on 
his  return.  There  were  many  new  members,  and 
they  sought  each  other  socially  and  soon  managed 
to  have  a  good  deal  of  talk  among  themselves, 
notwithstanding  the  studied  slights  of  the  old 
members.  One  member,  Clancy,  who  grew  pro 
fane  at  times,  said,  "  These  old  seeds  think  they're 
hell's  captains,  but  I  guess  we  can  live  if  they 
don't  shake  hands." 

Most  of  the  members  were  married  and  lived 
with  their  families  in  rented  houses,  but  others, 
who  were  too  poor  to  bring  their  families  or  who 
were  bachelors  like  Bradley,  lived  in  boarding 
houses.  Bradley  secured  a  room  and  board  in  a 
house  near  the  capitol,  because  he  seemed  to  be 
nearer  the  centre  of  things  when  he  could  look 
out  upon  the  dome. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  297 

It  surprised  him  to  learn  how  humbly  most  of 
the  congressmen  lived.  They  were  quite  ordi 
nary  humans  in  all  ways.  Of  course  some  of  the 
senators  of  great  wealth  lived  in  fine  houses,  but 
they  were  the  exception,  and  the  poorer  members 
did  not  conceal  their  suspicion  of  these  great 
men. 

"  It  aint  a  question  of  how  much  a  man's  got," 
Clancy  of  Iowa  said,  "but  how  he  got  it.  I've 
-simmered  the  thing  down  to  this:  Living  in  a 
hash-house  aint  a  guarantee  of  honesty  any  more 
than  living  in  a  four-story  brown-stone  is  a  sure 
sign  of  robbery,  but  it's  a  tolerably  safe 
inference." 

These  rich  senators  and  representatives,  own 
ers  of  vast  coal  tracts,  or  iron  mines,  or  factories, 
rode  up  to  the  capitol  with  glittering  turn-outs, 
their  horses'  clanking  bits  and  jingling  chains, 
warning  pedestrians  like  Clancy  and  Talcott,  to 
get  out  of  the  way.  For  the  first  time  in  his  life 
Bradley  met  great  wealth  with  all  of  its  power. 
It  shocked  him  and  made  him  bitter. 

He  took  little  interest  in  the  organizing  of  the 
house.  His  experience  in  Des  Moines  taught 
him  to  sit  quietly  outside  the  governing  circle. 
He  accepted  a  place  on  one  of  the  minor  com 
mittees  and  waited  to  see  what  would  develop. 


298  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

His  life  was  very  quiet.  Nothing  was  done 
before  the  holidays  but  organize,  and  he  found  a 
great  deal  of  time  to  study.  Radbourn  came 
back  during  the  early  weeks  of  the  session  and 
resumed  his  work. 

Clancy  went  to  the  theatre  very  often  and 
attended  all  manner  of  shows,  especially  all  that 
were  free  or  that  came  to  him  as  a  courtesy. 

"I've  lived  where  I  couldn't  get  these  things," 
he  said,  "and  I  propose  to  improve  each  shining 
hour." 

Attending  Congress  was  quite  like  attending 
the  legislature.  Every  morning  the  members 
went  up  to  the  great  building,  which  they  soon 
came  to  ignore,  except  as  a  place  to  do  business 
in.  They  trooped  there  quite  like  boys  going  to 
school.  It  was  the  state  legislature  aggrandized 
—  noisier,  more  tumultuous  and  confusing. 

In  a  little  while,  Bradley  ceased  to  notice  the 
difference  in  gilding  and  jim-crackery  between 
the  senate  and  representative  ends  of  the  cor 
ridors.  He  no  longer  noticed  the  distances,  the 
pictures,  or  the  statues  in  the  vaulted  dome,  but 
passed  through  the  vast  rotundas  with  no  thought 
of  them.  The  magnificence  of  it  all  grew  com 
mon  with  familiarity. 

The  vast  mass,  and  roar,  and  motion  of  the  hall 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  299 

itself  soon  ceased  to  confuse  or  abase  him.  In 
proportion  to  membership,  he  doubted  whether 
there  were  more  able  men  there  than  in  the  State 
legislature.  They  were  more  acute  politicians ; 
they  were  wilier,  and  talked  in  larger  terms,  manip 
ulating  states  instead  of  counties — that  was  all. 
The  routine  of  the  day  was  of  the  same  general 
character,  and  gave  him  no  trouble. 

Some  of  the  more  famous  of  the  leaders  he 
absolutely  loathed  —  great,  bloated,  swaggering, 
unscrupulous,  treacherous  tricksters.  "I'll  lend 
you  my  support,"  they  said,  as  if  it  were  some 
thing  that  could  be  loaned  like  a  horse.  He  often 
talked  them  over  with  Radbourn,  whose  experience 
in  and  about  Congress  as  a  newspaper  correspon 
dent  had  given  him  an  intimate  knowledge  of 
men,  and  had  rendered  him  contemptuous,  if  not 
rebellious. 

"The  men  counted  party  leaders  are  manipula 
tors,  as  a  matter  of  fact.  They  subordinate  every 
thing  to  party  success.  We've  got  to  have 
another  great  political  revolution  to  —  to  de-cen 
tralize  and  de-machinize  the  whole  of  our  political 
method.  Our  system  will  break  of  its  own 
weight ;  it  can't  go  on.  It  is  supposed  to  be  pop 
ular,  when  in  fact,  it  is  getting  farther  and  far 
ther  away  from  the  people  every  year.  Just  see 


300  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

the  departments.  Do  you  know  anything  about 
them  ? " 

"  No,  I  don't,"  Bradley  admitted. 

"You're  like  all  the  rest.  Every  year  the 
army  of  useless  clerks  increases ;  every  year  the 
numbers  of  useless  buildings  increases.  The 
whole  thing  is  appalling,  and  yet  the  people  are 
getting  apparently  more  helpless  to  reform  it. 
Laws  pile  upon  laws,  when  the  real  reform  is  to 
abolish  laws.  Wipe  out  grants  and  special  privi 
leges.  We  ought  to  be  legislating  toward  equali 
ty  of  opportunity  in  the  world,  and  here  we  go 
with  McKinley  bills,  and  the  devil  knows  what 
else.  By  the  way,  to  change  the  subject,  what 
has  become  of  Milton  Jennings  ?  He  started  out 
to  be  a  great  Republican  politician." 

"Well,  he  lives  there  yet ;  he's  still  in  politics, 
but  doesn't  seem  to  get  higher  than  a  county 
office." 

"  He  was  a  brilliant  fellow,  but  he  started  in  on 
the  wrong  side ;  there  is  no  hope  for  him  on  that 
side  in  the  West." 

"He's  married,  lives  just  opposite  the  Semin 
ary,  seems  to  be  reasonably  contented." 

Radbourn  turned  suddenly.  "You  are  not 
married  ? " 

Bradley  colored.      "No,  I'm  not." 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  301 

Radbourn  mused  a  little.  "  Seems  to  me,  I 
remember  some  talk  about  your  marrying  that 
little  —  Russell  girl?" 

"  Well,  I  didn't."  Bradley  bad  just  a  moment's 
temptation  to  tell  Radbourn  his  whole  secret,  but 
he  gave  it  up  as  preposterous. 

Legislation  was  incredibly  slow. 

"Beats  the  devil  how  little  we  fellows  amount 
to  here,"  Clancy  said  one  night  after  they  had 
been  sitting  all  day  in  their  seats,  while  Brown 
of  Georgia,  Dixon  of  Maine,  and  others  of  their 
like  had  wasted  hour  after  hour  in  all  sorts  of 
tedious  discussions  upon  mere  technicalities. 
"We  can't  even  vote,  by  thunder!  I'm  going  to 
make  a  great  break  one  of  these  days  and  make 
a  motion  to  adjourn." 

Bradley  laughed  dutifully,  for  this  was  the 
ancient  joke. 

"It's  an  outrage,"  Clancy  fumed.  The  speaker 
had  refused  to  recognize  him  and  he  was  furious. 
"The  speaker's  got  everything  in  his  hands. 
Say,  do  you  know  that  it's  all  made  up  the  day 
before  who's  goin'  to  be  recognized  ?  " 

"Yes,  I  found  that  out  some  time  ago,"  said 
Bradley  quietly. 

"Well,  I  feel  like  making  a  great  big  kick." 


302  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

"It  wouldn't  do  any  good." 

"Yes,  it  would,  it  would  relieve  my  feelings. 
It's  a  pretty  how  de  do,  to  send  a  man  here  to 
represent  his  constituents  and  then  put  the  whole 
power  of  the  house  into  the  hands  of  the  speaker 
and  the  committee  on  rules." 

Bradley's  seat  came  between  two  of  the  old 
members,  Samuels  of  Mississippi  and  Col.  Max 
well  of  South  Carolina,  and  they  were  constantly 
talking  across  Bradley's  back  or  before  his  face, 
ignoring  him  completely.  It  wore  on  him  so  that 
he  fell  into  the  habit  of  sitting  over  beside  the 
profane  Clancy  in  Bidwell's  seat.  Bidwell  occu 
pied  the  leather-covered  lounge  behind  the  screen 
so  industriously  that  no  one  else  felt  privileged  to 
throw  himself  down  there. 

The  drinking  disgusted  Bradley,  and  the 
obscene  talk  which  he  heard  in  snatches  as  he 
went  past  sickened  him.  The  same  sort  of  atti 
tude  toward  the  female  clerks  was  expressed  by  a 
certain  class  of  the  legislators.  He  began  to 
wonder  if  he  were  not  abnormal  in  some  way  by 
reason  of  his  repugnance  to  all  this  desolating 
derision  of  really  holy  things.  He  found  that 
while  he  had  less  religion  than  these  men,  they 
had  infinitely  less  reverence  for  the  things  which 
he  considered  sacred. 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  303 

Some  of  the  better  class  of  members  invited 
him  to  their  houses  and  he  went  occasionally,  and 
if  he  found  them  uncongenial  he  never  went 
again.  He  could  not  make  calls  out  of  duty.  It 
seemed  to  him  that  they  took  very  little  interest 
in  the  higher  side  of  politics  and  some  of  them  he 
found  were  unaware  of  any  higher  side  of  life. 

He  could  not  help  noticing  that  Washington 
was  a  city  full  of  beautiful  girls.  His  idolatry  of 
Miss  Wilbur  could  not  prevent  him  from  admir 
ing  them  as  they  streamed  along  the  walk  to 
church.  He  sometimes  looked  wistfully  at  this 
flood  of  sunny  laughing  life  that  moved  by  him  so 
near  and  yet  so  completely  out  of  his  reach.  He 
knew  at  such  times  that  he  had  missed  something 
sweet  out  of  his  own  lonely  life. 

But  these  moments  were  few.  He  realized 
that  there  was  no  place  in  the  social  life  of  the 
city  for  him,  and  the  librarian  knew  him  better 
than  the  butlers  in  the  houses  of  rich  senators. 
He  attended  one  or  two  public  receptions  and 
was  thoroughly  disgusted  with  the  crush,  and  felt 
the  essential  vulgarity  of  the  whole  thing. 

His  life  at  the  capital  was  not  entirely  that  of 
the  politician.  He  had  in  him  capabilities  for 
appreciating  art  and  literature,  which  most  of  his 
colleagues  had  not.  He  studied  upon  economic 


304  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

problems,  rather  than  upon  partisan  politics,  and 
tried  to  grasp  the  meaning  of  social  change  and 
social  condition,  and  to  comprehend  economic 
causes  and  tendencies.  He  spent  many  hours 
upon  problems  which  were  unconsciously  unfit 
ting  him  for  partisan  success. 

His  life  was  very  full  and  happy,  save  for  the 
dull  hunger  at  his  heart  whenever  he  thought  of 
Ida.  He  wrote  to  her  still,  but  her  replies  still 
kept  their  calm,  impersonal  tone.  One  night, 
when  he  returned  from  the  capitol,  he  found  a 
letter  from  her  enclosing  some  clippings. 

"I  have  joined  the  Farmers'  Alliance,"  she 
wrote.  "  I  begin  to  believe  that  another  great 
wave  of  thought  is  about  to  sweep  over  the  farm 
ers.  The  spirit  of  the  grange  did  not  die.  It 
has  passed  on  into  this  new  organization.  The 
difference  is  going  to  be  that  this  new  alliance 
of  the  farmers  will  be  deeper  in  thought  and 
broader  in  sympathy.  I  never  believed  the  grange 
a  failure.  It  taught  people  by  its  failure.  I'm 
going  to  Kansas  to  speak  for  them  there.  The 
alliance  is  very  strong  there.  This  order  will 
become  political.  Its  leaders  are  very  enthusias 
tic." 

She  passed  on  to  write  of  other  things,  but 
Bradley  was  deeply  affected  by  this  news.  He 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  305 

had  heard  of  the  alliance  obscurely,  but  had  felt 
that  it  was  only  an  attempt  to  revive  the  old 
grange  movement,  and  that  it  could  not  succeed. 
But  her  letter  set  him  thinking. 

He  wrote  away  on  a  speech  till  nine  o'clock, 
and  then  went  out  for  his  usual  walk  about  the 
capitol  and  its  grounds,  which  had  never  lost 
their  charm,  as  the  city  itself  had.  He  had  grown 
into  the  habit  of  going  out  whenever  he  wished  to 
escape  the  paltry  decoration,  the  hot  colors,  the 
vitiated  air,  of  his  boarding-place  and  the  impor 
tunities  of  his  fellow-boarders.  He  went  out 
whenever  he  wanted  to  think  great  and  refreshing 
thoughts,  or  whenever  he  felt  the  need  of  beauty 
or  the  presence  of  life. 


306  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 


XXVII. 

BRADLEY'S  LONG-CHERISHED  HOPE  VANISHES. 

IT  had  been  snowing  all  the  afternoon,  and  the 
shrubbery  hung  heavy  and  silent  with  heaped, 
clinging,  feathery  snow,  dazzling  white  by  con 
trast  with  the  dark  sustaining  branches,  and  the 
yellow  lamps  flamed  warmly  amid  the  all-sur 
rounding  steely  blue  and  glistening  white.  The 
damp  pavements,  where  the  snow  had  melted, 
were  banded  with  gold  and  crimson  from  the 
reflected  light  of  the  lamps  and  the  warning  glare 
of  car  and  carriage  lights. 

As  Bradley  breathed  the  pure  air  and  walked 
soundlessly  along  the  narrow  paths  and  looked 
across  the  unflecked,  untrodden  snow  up  to  the 
vast  and  silent  dome,  he  shuddered  in  wordless 
delight.  He  hungered  to  share  it  with  Ida.  It 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  307 

was  like  fairy-land  —  so  far  removed  from  daylight 
reality ;  and  yet  the  sound  of  sleigh-bells,  the 
occasional  shouts  of  coasters,  and  the  laughter  of 
girls  added  a  familiar  human  quality  to  it  all, 
and  added  an  ache  to  the  mysterious  shuddering 
delight  of  it  all.  It  was  so  evanescent ;  it  would 
decay  so  quickly.  The  wind,  the  morning  sun, 
would  destroy  it. 

He  walked  up  to  the  lonely  esplanade,  and  saw 
the  city's  lights  shine  below  him  like  rubies  and 
amethysts,  and  saw  far  beyond  the  snow-heaped 
highlands,  above  which  Jupiter  hung  poised, 
serene  and  lone,  the  king  of  the  western  sky. 

How  far  away  all  this  seemed  from  the  brazen 
declamation,  the  monotonous  reiterations  of  the 
reading-clerk,  and  from  the  sharp  clank  of  the 
speaker's  gavel !  His  ear  wearied,  his  heart  sick 
of  the  whole  life  of  the  farcical  legislature,  with 
its  flood  of  corrupt  bills,  got  back  serenity  and 
youth  and  repose  in  the  presence  of  the  snows, 
the  silences,  and  the  stars. 

Again  the  impulse  seized  him  to  write  to  Ida 
and  show  her  his  whole  soul ;  to  dare  and  end  once 
for  all  his  ache  of  suspense.  He  went  back  to  his 
room,  and  seized  pen  and  paper.  Everything  he 
wrote  seemed  too  formal  or  too  presumptuous, 
At  last  he  finished  a  short  letter  — 


308  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

Dear  Miss  Wilbur :  — 

I  do  not  know  how  to  begin  to  say  what  I  want  to  say.  I  am 
afraid  of  losing  you  out  of  my  life  by  not  writing,  and  I'm  afraid 
if  I  write,  I  will  lose  you.  It  is  impossible  for  me  to  say  what 
you've  done  for  me.  I  never  would  have  been  anything  more 
than  a  poor  fanner,  only  for  you.  I  don't  want  to  apologize  to 
you  for  telling  you  how  much  you  are  to  me.  I  want  to  appeal 
to  you  to  give  me  a  chance  to  work  for  you;  that's  all.  I  want 
you  to  give  me  some  hope,  if  you  can. 

I  know  I  am  asking  a  great  deal  even  in  that.  I  realize  how 
unreasonable  it  is.  You've  only  seen  me  a  few  times;  and  yet 
I'm  not  going  to  apologize  for  it.  I  must  have  it  over  with ;  I 
can't  go  on  in  this  way.  Won't  you  write  to  me  and  tell  me  that 
I  can  look  forward  to  the  future  with  hope  ? 
Yours  sincerely, 

BRADLEY  TALCOTT. 

For  the  next  ten  days  he  was  of  little  service  to 
his  country  except  the  day  he  made  his  speech  on 
the  tariff  question.  It  was  his  first  set  speech, 
and  he  had  twenty  minutes  yielded  to  him  by  the 
gentleman  from  Missouri,  who  had  charge  of  the 
bill.  He  had  the  close  attention  of  the  House, 
not  only  for  his  thoughts,  which  were  fresh  and 
direct,  but  also  for  the  natural  manner  in  which 
he  spoke.  He  had  lost  a  good  deal  of  his  "ora 
tory,"  but  had  gained  a  powerful,  flexible  and  col 
loquial  style  which  made  most  of  the  orators 
around  him  seem  absurd.  The  fine  shadings  of 
emotion  and  of  thought  in  his  voice  struck  upon 
the  ear  wearied  with  rancous  yells  and  monoto- 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  309 

nous  brazen  declamations,  with  a  cool  and  restful 
effect.  At  the  close,  the  menbers  crowded  about 
to  congratulate  him  upon  his  efforts,  and  for  the 
moment  he  felt  quite  satisfied  with  himself. 

It  gave  him  a  shock  to  see  Ida's  fateful  letter 
lying  upon  the  hat-rack  in  his  boarding-house, 
where  it  had  been  pawed  over  by  the  whole  house-- 
hold.  He  hastened  to  his  room,  and  dropped  into 
a  chair  with  that  familiar  terrible  numbness  in  his 
limbs,  and  with  his  heart  beating  so  hard  it  short 
ened  his  breathing.  He  was  like  a  man  breath 
less  with  running.  When  his  eyes  fell  on  the 
writing,  his  hands  ceased  to  shake,  and  his  quick 
breathing  fell  away  into  a  long,  shuddering  inspi 
ration.  He  read  the  first  page  twice  without 
moving  a  muscle.  Then  he  turned  the  page,  and 
finished  it.  It  was  not  long,  and  it  was  very  direct. 

Dear  Mr.  Talcott :  — 

Your  letter  has  moved  me  deeply,  very  deeply.  I  would  have 
prevented  its  being  written  if  I  could.  It  is  the  greatest  tribute 
—  save  one  —  that  has  ever  come  to  me;  and  yet  I  wish  I  had 
hot  read  it.  I'm  not  free  to  make  you  any  promise.  I'm  not 
free  to  correspond  with  you  any  more  —  now.  I've  been  trying  to 
find  a  way  to  tell  you  so  indirectly,  but  your  letter  makes  it  nec 
essary  for  me  to  do  so  directly. 

The  rest  of  the  letter  was  an  attempt  to  soften 
the  blow,  but  it  fell  upon  him  very  hard. 


310  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

The  possibility  which  he  had  always  feared  had 
become  a  fact,  the  hope  which  he  had  kept  in  the 
obscure  processes  of  his  thought  and  which  had 
filled  a  vital  place  in  his  action,  dropped  out  and 
left  him  purposeless.  This  hope  of  somehow, 
someway  having  her  near  to  him  had  been  the 
mainspring  of  his  action  and  it  could  not  be  with 
drawn  without  leaving  him  disabled. 

He  returned  to  the  letter  again,  and  again 
studying  each  word,  each  mark.  He  saw  in  it 
her  acceptance  of  some  other  —  probably  Birdsell. 

Then  he  saw  that  she  had  withdrawn  the  priv 
ilege —  the  blessed  privilege  —  of  writing  to  her. 
She  was  determined  to  go  out  of  his  life  com 
pletely.  At  times  as  he  imagined  this  strongly, 
his  throat  swelled  till  he  could  hardly  breathe. 
He  would  have  cried  if  nature  had  not  denied  him 
that  relief. 

He  saw  how  baseless  his  hope  had  been,  and  he 
exonerated  her  from  all  blame.  She  had  been 
kind  and  helpful  till  he  spoiled  it  all  by  a  fool's 
presumption.  He  had  always  exaggerated  her 
social  position  and  her  attainments,  but  in  the 
depths  of  his  self-abasement  and  despair  every 
kindness  she  had  done  him  and  every  letter  she 
had  written  took  on  a  new  significance.  On 
every  one  he  saw  her  warnings.  Every  meeting 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE,  311 

he  had  ever  had  with  her  he  now  went  over  and 
over  with  the  strange  pleasure  one  takes  in  bruis 
ing  an  aching  limb. 

She  had  never  been  other  than  reserved,  imper 
sonal  in  his  presence.  She  had  shown  him  again 
and  again  that  her  intimate  life  was  not  for  him  to 
know.  He  remembered  now  the  peculiar  look  of 
perfect  understanding  which  flashed  between  Bird- 
sell  and  Ida,  which  troubled  him  at  the  time,  but 
which  his  cursed  egotism  had  brushed  away  as  of 
no  significance. 

His  speech  lay  there  on  the  table,  it  was  waste 
paper  now.  He  had  no  one  left  to  address  it  to. 
His  utter  loneliness  came  back  to  him.  His 
mind  went  back  over  the  line  of  his  life  till  it 
came  again  into  the  little  opening  in  the  Wiscon 
sin  woods  where  the  pines  wept  or  snarled  cease 
lessly —  till  his  mother  died  in  the  moan  and  the 
snarl  and  shadow  of  them.  His  heart  went  out 
to  her  as  never  before  since  Ida  came  into  his 
life. 

The  gloom  and  reticence  of  those  dark-green 
forests  had  wrought  him  into  the  reticent,  serious 
man  he  was.  He  was  not  gloomy  naturally,  he 
was  strong  and  hopeful,  but  this  was  one  of  those 
moments  which  appall  a  man,  even  a  young  man  — 
or  more  properly,  especially  a  young  man. 


312  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

He  did  not  go  down  to  dinner,  but  sat  in  his 
room  till  late;  then  when  hunger  compelled,  he 
went  out  to  a  vast  cafe,  where  he  could  be  more 
alone.  It  seemed  that  night  as  if  all  incentive  to 
live  were  gone ;  but  he  went  to  the  session  next 
day  in  a  mechanical  sort  of  a  way,  and  each  day 
thereafter  in  the  same  way,  though  he  took  no 
interest  in  the  proceedings. 

Clancy  had  his  suspicions  and  had  to  verify 
them. 

"Talcott,  your' re  off  y'r  feed.  Girl  gone  back 
on  yeh?" 

Bradley  refused  to  reply  and  Clancy  took  delight 
in  spreading  the  story  among  his  gang.  They 
respected  Bradley's  physique  too  much  to  push 
him  unduly,  however. 

Nature  slowly  reasserted  itself,  and  as  the 
weeks  went  by  he  regained  his  interest  in  the 
work;  but  the  sparkle,  the  allurement  of  life, 
was  gone,  and  he  went  about  with  more  of  the 
purely  mechanical  in  his  actions. 

He  read  now  every  available  bit  of  news  relat 
ing  to  the  farmers'  rising  in  the  West,  in  the  hope 
that  Ida's  work  would  be  mentioned  in  it.  The 
papers  were  getting  savage  in  their  attack  upon 
the  movement  in  Kansas.  It  was  said  to  mean 
repudiation  ;  that  it  was  a  movement  of  the  shift- 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  313 

less  and  unscrupulous  citizens  which  destroyed 
the  credit  of  the  State  and  disturbed  social  con 
ditions  wantonly.  The  West  seemed  on  the  point 
of  upheaval,  and  Kansas  seemed  to  be  the  centre 
of  the  feeling  of  unrest. 


314  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 


XXVIII. 
SPRING    CONVENTIONS. 

THE  session  wore  along  monotonously  —  at  least 
to  those  who  like  Bradley  took  no  interest  in  the 
bitter  partisan  wrangling — and  suddenly  it  came 
upon  him  that  spring  was  near.  There  came  a 
couple  of  sunny  days  after  three  days  of  warm 
rain  and  the  grass  grew  suddenly  green.  A  robin 
hunting  worms  on  the  lawn  laughed  out  auda 
ciously  one  morning  as  Bradley  went  across  the 
path.  There  seemed  to  be  a  mysterious  awaken 
ing  thrill  in  every  plant  and  animal.  The  distant 
hills  grew  soft  in  outline. 

A  few  days  and  the  Spirea  Japonica  flamed 
out  in  yellow,  the  quince  in  the  hedges  showed 
its  rose-colored  tips  of  bursting  blooms  and  on  the 
red  buds  grew  wonderful  garnet-colored  fists  soon 
to  open  into  beautiful  palms  of  flowers.  The 
gardeners  got  out  with  rakes  and  wheel-barrows 
and  lazily  plodded  to  and  fro  upon  the  beautiful 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  315 

seamless  green  of  the  lawns,  or  spaded  about  the 
flowers  beds  in  the  countless  little  parks  of  the 
the  city. 

A  few  days  later  and  the  old  white  mule  and 
darkey  driver  came  out  upon  the  springing  grass 
with  the  purring  mower,  and  it  made  Bradley's 
blood  leap  with  recollections  of  the  haying  field. 
The  air  began  to  grow  sweet  with  the  odor  of 
flowers.  The  sky  took  on  a  warm  look.  The 
building  took  on  a  deeper  blue  in  its  shadows  and 
the  north  windows  became  violet  at  noon.  Brad- 
]ey  longed  for  the  country,  but  the  orange-colored 
mud  of  the  suburbs  kept  him  confined  to  the 
sidewalks. 

On  Easter  Sunday  the  girls  came  out  in  their 
delicious  dresses,  looking  dainty  and  sweet  as  the 
lilies  each  church  displayed.  New  hats,  new 
grasses  and  springing  plants  announced  that 
spring  had  come.  The  "leaves  of  absence"  indi 
cated  spring  in  the  House. 

As  June  came  on,  the  question  of  re-election 
began  to  trouble  some  of  the  members.  They 
began  to  get  "  leave  of  absence  on  important  busi 
ness,"  and  to  go  home  to  fix  up  their  political 
fences.  There  was  no  sign  of  adjournment.  It 
was  the  policy  of  the  Republicans  to  keep  the 
Democrats  out  of  the  field. 


316  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE, 

The  profane  Clancy  was  one  of  the  first  to  go. 
He  came  to  Bradley  one  day,  "  Say,  Talcott,  I  wish 
you'd  ask  for  indefinite  leave  for  me,  my  fences 
are  in  a  hell  of  a  fix  and  besides  I  want  to  see 
my  wife.  I'm  no  earthly  use  here  —  though  you 
needn't  state  that  in  your  request." 

"  What'll  I  say  ? " 

"Oh,  important  business  —  or  sickness  —  the 
baby's  cutting  a  tooth — just  as  you  like.  It  all 
goes." 

"I  guess  I'll  try  important  business.  The 
other  is  too  much  worn." 

"All  right..  It  does  beat  hell  the  amount  of 
sickness  there  is  on  pension  bill  nights  and  on 
convention  week." 

Clancy  was  a  type  of  legislator  whose  idea  of 
legislation  was  to  have  a  good  time  and  look  out 
for  re-election.  Bradley,  however,  did  not  worry 
particularly  about  his  re-election  until  he  received 
a  letter  from  the  Judge  asking  him  to  come  home 
and  attend  the  convention. 

"It's  just  as  well  to  be  on  the  ground,"  the 
Judge  wrote;  "there  is  a  good  deal  of  opposition 
developing  in  the  north-west  part  of  the  district. 
Larson  wants  the  nomination  for  the  Legislature, 
and  he  is  trying  to  swing  the  Scandinavians  for 
Fishbein.  They  are  making  a  good  deal  of  your 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  317 

attitude  on  the  pension  bill,  and  that  interview  on 
the  oleo  business  where  you  go  back  on  your  legis 
lative  vote  is  being  circulated  to  do  you  harm." 

This  letter  alarmed  Bradley,  and  at  once 
showed  him  what  a  fight  the  Judge  was  making. 
Suddenly  he  woke  to  the  fact  that  defeat  would 
be  unwelcome.  Congress  had  come  at  last  to 
have  a  subtle  fascination,  and  he  loved  the  city 
and  its  noble  buildings,  its  theatres,  and  its  libra 
ries.  Since  that  fatal  letter  from  Ida  he  had  been 
forced  to  go  more  often  to  the  theatres  and  con 
certs.  They  seemed  now  like  necessities  to  him, 
and  the  thought  of  going  back  to  private  life  was 
not  at  all  pleasant.  He  therefore  got  leave  of 
absence,  and  took  the  train  for  Rock  River. 

He  did  not  see  so  much  of  the  outside  world 
on  this  return  trip.  His  trouble  came  back  upon 
him,  mixed,  too,  with  something  sweet  which  lay 
in  the  fact  of  a  return  to  the  West.  He  caught  a 
thrill  of  this  as  the  train  dipped  and  swung  round 
a  peak  on  the  west  slope  of  the  Alleghanies,  and 
for  a  single  instant  the  sea  of  sun-illumined  swells 
and  peaks  of  foliage  broke  upon  the  eyes  and  then 
was  lost,  and  the  train  dropped  down  into  the 
rising  darkness  of  the  valley. 

It  came  to  him  again  the  next  afternoon  as  he 
rode  away  over  the  wide,  low  swells  of  the  prairies 


318  ^    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

between  Chicago  and  the  Mississippi.  It  was  a 
beautiful  showery  June  day.  A  day  of  alternate 
warm  rain  and  brilliant  sunshine,  and  the  rushing 
engine  plunged  into  trailing  clouds  of  rain  only  to 
burst  forth  into  sunshine  again  with  exultant 
shrieks  of  untamed  energy,  and  listening  to  it  one 
might  have  fancied  it  a  living  thing  with  capa 
bility  to  snuff  the  glorious  west  wind,  and  eyes  to 
reflect  the  cool  green  swells  of  pasture. 

It  was  a  magnificent  thing  to  step  off  the 
Chicago  sleeper  into  the  broad  morning  at  Rock 
River.  Soaring  streamers  of  red  and  flame-color 
arched  the  eastern  sky  like  the  dome  of  a  mighty 
pagoda.  Birds  were  singing  in  the  cool,  sweet 
hush;  roosters  were  crowing;  the  air  was  full  of 
the  scent  of  fresh  leaves  and  succulent,  springing 
grain.  Bradley  abandoned  himself  to  the  spring, 
and  his  walk  up  the  quiet  street  was  a  keen 
delight.  The  town  seemed  wofully  small  and 
shabby  and  lifeless  ;  but  it  had  trees  and  birds 
and  earth-smell  to  compensate  for  other  things. 

There  was  no  one  at  the  station  to  receive  him, 
not  even  a  'bus.  The  station  agent  said : 

"  Guess  the  Judge  didn't  know  you  was  comin' 
or  he'd  been  down  here  with  a  band-wagon." 

Mrs.  Brown  was  in  the  kitchen  bent  above  a 
pan  of  sizzling  meat.  A  Norwegian  girl  with 


A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  339 

vivid  blue  eyes  and  pink  and  white  complexion 
was  setting  the  table  with  great  precision.  She 
smiled  broadly  as  Bradley  put  his  finger  to  his 
lips  and  crept  toward  Mrs.  Brown,  who  gave  a 
great  start  as  she  felt  the  clasp  of  his  arm. 

"  Gracious  sakes  alive  !     Bradley  Talcott !  " 

"Did  I  scare  yeh  ? "  he  inquired,  smiling. 
"  Where's  the  Judge  ? " 

She  looked  at  him  fondly  as  he  held  her  a 
moment  in  his  arms. 

"He's  out  by  the  well  —  I  think  he's  at  work 
at  something,  for  I've  heard  him  swearing  and 
groaning  out  there." 

Bradley  found  the  Judge  weeding  a  bed  of 
onions.  He  had  a  couple  of  folded  newspapers 
under  his  knees  and  was  in  his  shirt-sleeves.  He 
looked  like  a  felon  condemned  for  life  to  hard 
manual  labor. 

"Judge,  how  are  you  ?  "  called  Bradley. 

The  Judge  looked  up  with  a  scowling  brow. 
"Hello,  Brad."  He  wiped  his  hand  on  his  thigh 
and  rose  with  a  groan  to  shake  hands.  "  I'm 
slavin'  again.  Mrs.  Brown  insists  on  my  working 
on  the  garden.  How's  Congress?" 

"  Piratical  as  ever.  Nothing  doing  that  ought 
to  be  done.  How's  everything  here  ?  " 

The  Judge  put  on  his  coat ;  "  I  guess  I'll  quit 


320  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

for  this  time,"  he  said,  referring  to  the  onions 
"  Let's  wash  up  for  breakfast." 

They  washed  at  the  kitchen  sink  as  usual. 
Mrs.  Brown  watched  Bradley  with  maternal  pleas 
ure  as  he  hung  his  coat  on  a  nail  and  went  about 
in  his  shirt-sleeves  scrubbing  his  face  and  comb 
ing  his  hair. 

"It's  good  to  see  you  around  again,  Bradley." 

"Well,  it  seems  good  to  me.  Seems  like  old 
times  to  sit  down  here  to  your  cooking  with  the 
kitchen  door  open  and  the  chickens  singing." 

"We're  all  right  in  this  county,"  said  the 
Judge,  referring  back  to  politics;  "but  as  I  wrote 
you,  it  aint  all  clear  sailing.  We've  got  work  to 
do.  I've  called  the  Convention  at  Cedarville,  in 
order  to  keep  some  useful  people  in  the  field. 
We'll  take  dinner  with  old  Jake  Schlimgen  —  he's 
a  power  with  the  Germans." 

Bradley  avoided  political  talk  as  much  as  possi 
ble,  but  when  on  the  street  there  seemed  nothing 
else  to  talk  about.  Councill  and  Ridings  assured 
him  he  was  all  right  in  the  eastern  part  of  the 
county,  and  under  their  flattery  he  grew  quite 
cheerful.  Their  simple,  honest  admiration  did 
him  good. 

On  the  day  named,  Bradley  and  the  Judge 
drove  off  up  the  road  in  a  one-horse  buggy.  The 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  321 

Judge  talked  spasmodically ;  Bradley  was  silent, 
looking  about  him  with  half-shut  eyes.  The  wheat 
had  clothed  the  brown  fields ;  crows  were  flying 
through  the  soft  mist  that  dimmed  the  light  of 
the  sun,  but  did  not  intercept  its  heat.  Each  hill 
and  tree  glimmered  across  the  waves  of  warm  air, 
and  seemed  to  pulse  as  if  alive.  Blackbirds  and 
robins  and  sparrows  everywhere  gave  voice  to  the 
ecstasy  which  the  men  felt,  but  could  not  express. 

The  Judge  roused  up,  slapping  the  horse  with 
the  reins.  "It's  going  to  be  a  fight;  but  Fish- 
bein  will  be  left  on  the  first  ballot  by  twenty-five 
votes." 

Cedarville  was  wide-awake  —  feverishly  so.  The 
street  was  lined  with  knots  of  gesticulating  politi 
cians.  As  he  alighted  Bradley's  friends  swarmed 
about  him  with  "three  cheers  for  the  Hon. 
Brad  Talcott."  He  shook  hands  all  round  with 
unfeigned  pleasure. 

"Hurrah,  boys,  let's  all  go  over  to  the  Palace 
Hotel  and  have  some  dinner,"  said  the  Judge  at 
last. 

The  rest  whooped  with  delight.  "That's  the 
cooky,  Judge." 

They  swarmed  in  upon  Jake  like  the  locusts 
into  Egypt.  They  washed  (some  of  them)  in  the 
wash-room,  out  of  tin  basins,  laughing  and  talking 


322  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

in  hearty  clamor  over  the  water  and  the  comb. 
Others  flung  their  nondescript  wind-worn  hats 
upon  the  floor,  brushed  their  hair  with  their  fin 
gers  and  went  into  the  dining-room  as  if  going 
into  a  farm-kitchen  in  threshing  time. 

The  girls  were  in  a  flutter  of  haste,  and  giggled 
and  bumped  against  each  other  trying  to  serve  the 
dinner  to  order — 

"  Quick  as  the  Lord  '11  let  yeh." 

Bradley's  constituents  were  mostly  farmers, 
clean- eyed  and  hearty.  They  all  felt  sure  of  suc 
cess  and  jeered  the  opposition  good-naturedly. 

When  the  Judge  and  Bradley  rode  home  that 
night,  they  were  silent  for  another  cause.  They 
had  been  defeated  on  the  tenth  ballot,  and  bitter 
things  had  been  said  by  both  sides. 

It  was  again  beautiful  around  them,  but  they 
did  not  notice  it.  The  low  sun  flung  its  level  red 
rays  of  light  across  the  flaming  green  of  the 
springing  grain,  and  lighted  every  western  win 
dow-pane  into  burning  squares  of  crimson.  The 
train  carrying  the  successful  Waterville  crowd 
passed  them,  and  they  waved  their  hats  in  return 
to  their  opponents'  salute. 

The  Judge  was  as  badly  defeated  as  Bradley. 
He  took  it  very  hard.  It  seemed  to  give  the 


A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  323 

lie  to  all  his  prophecies  of  Democratic  progress. 
It  seemed  to  him  a  defeat  of  Jeffersonian  principle. 
He  consoled  himself  by  saying — 

"  Those  fellows  don't  represent  the  people. 
The  thing  to  do  is  to  bolt  the  convention  "  ;  and 
then  he  went  on  planning  an  independent  cam 
paign. 

Bradley  maintained  gloomy  silence.  The  com 
ment  of  his  friends  hurt  him  more  than  his  defeat. 
Their  tone  of  pity  cut  him,  and  left  him  raw  to  the 
gibes  of  his  opponents.  The  fact  that  an  honor 
able,  honest  man  could  have  enemies  in  his  own 
party  was  borne  in  upon  him  with  merciless  force. 
What  had  he  done  that  men  should  yell  in  hell- 
like  ferocity  of  glee  over  his  defeat  ? 

This  defeat  cut  closer  into  the  Judge's  life  than 
anything  that  had  come  to  him  since  the  death  of 
his  son.  If  Bradley  had  not  been  so  blind  in  his 
selfish  suffering  he  would  have  seen  how  the  Judge 
had  aged  and  saddened  since  the  morning. 

But  the  old  man's  vital  nature  would  not  rest 
under  defeat.  He  almost  forced  Bradley  to  issue 
a  card  to  the  public  announcing  his  independent 
candidacy  for  Congress.  Bradley  had  no  heart  in 
it,  however.  The  energy  of  youth  seemed  gone 
out  of  him. 

The  Judge  gathered  his  forces  together  for  bat- 


324  -4   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

tie,  but  Bradley  fled  away  from  Rock  River  to 
escape  the  comments  of  his  friends  as  well  as  his 
enemies.  He  was  too  raw  to  invite  strokes  of  the 
lash.  He  dreaded  the  meeting  with  his  colleagues 
at  Washington,  but  there  was  a  little  more  reserve 
in  their  comment  and  there  were  fewer  who  took  a 
vital  interest  in  his  affairs. 

He  met  Radbourn  a  few  days  after  his  return. 

"  Well,"  Radbourn  said,  "  I  see  by  the  papers 
that  your  defeat  in  the  convention  was  due  to 
your  advocacy  of  '  cranky  notions.'  I  told  you 
the  advocacy  of  heresies  was  dangerous ;  I  have 
no  comfort  for  you.  You  had  your  choice  before 
you.  You  can  be  a  hypocrite  and  knuckle  down 
to  every  monopoly  or  special  act,  or  you  can  be  an 
individual  and — go  out  of  office." 

"I'll  go  out  of  office,  I  guess,  whether  I  want 
to  or  not,"  was  his  bitter  reply.  He  suffered  se 
verely  for  a  few  days  with  the  commiseration  of 
friends  and  the  thinly-veiled  ridicule  of  his  polit 
ical  enemies,  but  each  man  was  too  much  occupied 
to  hold  Bradley's  defeat  long  in  mind.  He  soon 
sank  back  into  quiet,  if  not  into  repose. 

As  the  hot  weather  came  on,  the  city  became 
almost  as  quiet  as  Rock  River  itself.  Save  tak 
ing  care  of  the  few  tourists  who  drifted  through, 
there  was  very  little  doing.  The  cars  ground 


A    SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  325 

along  ever  more  thinly  until  they  might  be  called 
occasional.  The  trees  jput  forth  their  abundance 
of  leaf,  and  under  them  the  city  seemed  to  sleep. 
Congress  had  settled  down  into  a  dull  and  drowsy 
succession  of  daily  adjournments  and  filibustering. 
The  speaker  ruled  remorselessly,  "counting  the 
hats  in  the  cloak-room  to  make  up  his  quorum," 
his  critics  said. 

Nothing  was  doing,  but  vast  accumulations  of 
appropriations  were  piling  up,  waiting  the  hurried 
action  of  the  last  few  days  of  the  session.  The 
senators  dawdled  in  and  out  dressed  in  the  thin 
nest  clothing ;  the  House  looked  sparse  and  in 
effectual. 

Bradley  grew  depressed,  and  at  last  he  became 
positively  ill.  He  was  depressed  by  the  incessant 
relentless  attacks  made  upon  him  through  the 
Waterville  Patriot,  and  by  his  apparently  hope 
less  outlook.  The  Patriot  published  some  of  his 
radical  utterances  much  garbled,  of  course,  and 
called  him  "an  anarchist  and  a  socialist,  a  fit 
leader  for  the  repudiating  gang  of  alleged  farmers 
in  Kansas." 

Radbourn  became  alarmed  for  him,  and  advised 
him  to  get  indefinite  leave  of  absence  and  go 
home.  "  Go  back  into  the  haying-field ;  that's 
what  you  need ;  they  won't  miss  you  here.  Go 


326  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

home  and  go  out  of  politics,  and  stay  out  till  the 
revolution  comes ;  then  go  out  and  chalk  death  on 
your  enemies'  door." 

The  advice  to  go  home  was  so  obviously  sound 
that  Bradley  took  it  at  once.  It  seemed  as  if  the 
atmosphere  of  the  city  would  destroy  him.  As  a 
matter  of  fact  it  was  inactivity  that  was  killing 
him.  He  found  it  so  hard  to  exercise — except 
by  walking,  and  that  did  not  rest  his  over-active 
mind. 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 


XXIX. 

BRADLEY    DISCOURAGED. 

THE  Judge  and  Mrs  Brown  were  alarmed  at 
the  change  in  him.  He  was  gloomy  and  pale,  but 
he  protested  he  was  all  right. 

"  I'm  going  out  on  the  farm.  I  believe  it'll  do 
me  good  to  go  out  and  help  Councill  put  up  his 
hay.  It  seems  to  me  if  I  could  get  physically 
tired  and  wolfishly  hungry  again  it  would  do  me 
good." 

The  Judge  drove  him  out  to  Councill's  one 
afternoon.  Everybody  they  met  seemed  delighted 
to  see  him.  Mrs.  Councill  came  out  to  the  horse 
block,  her  bare  arm  held  up  to  shield  her  eyes. 

"  Well,  Brad  Talcott,  how  are  you — anyway  ? 
you're  jest  in  time  to  help  me  pick  berries." 

Bradley  sprang  out  and  shook  hands  with  hearty 
force.  "  Give  us  your  dish." 

"  H'yare  !  "  yelled  Councill  from  the  load  of  hay 
he  was  driving  in,  "  I  can  use  you  out  here." 

22 


328  *    SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

"  Oh,  you  go  long,"  replied  Mrs.  Councill. 
"  He's  got  better  company  and  a  better  job." 

Out  in  the  berry  patch  he  talked  over  the 
neighborhood  affairs  and  picked  berries  and  killed 
mosquitoes,  while  the  wind  wandered  by  with 
rustling  steps  on  the  lombardy  poplar  leaves.  The 
locusts  sang  and  the  grasshoppers  snapped  their 
shining  wings.  It  was  a  blessed  relief  to  his 
troubled  older  self,  for  he  slipped  back  into  the 
more  tranquil  life  of  his  boyhood. 

At  supper  he  sat  at  the  table  with  the  men, 
whose  wet  shirts  showed  how  fierce  the  work  of 
pitching  the  hay  had  been. 

"  Be  ye  out  f  r  play  or  work,  Brad  ?  "  asked 
Councill. 

"  Work.     Need  a  hand  ?  " 

"  They's  plenty  to  do — but  I'm  afraid  you  can't 
take  a  hand's  place,  for  a  while." 

"  Try  me  and  see." 

They  were  all  curious  to  hear  of  Washington, 
but  he  was  more  inclined  to  talk  of  the  crops  and 
the  cattle. 

He  went  to  sleep  that  night  in  the  bare  garret 
with  the  men,  and  woke  the  next  morning  at  sun 
rise  at  sound  of  Councill's  voice  calling  him, 
just  as  he  used  to  do  when  he  was  a  hired 
man. 


A  SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  329 

"  Hello,  Brad  !     Roll  out !  " 

He  went  down  to  breakfast,  sloshed  his  face  at 
the  cistern  pump  and  was  ready  to  eat  when  the 
men  came  in. 

"  We  live  jest  the  same  as  ever,  Brad,"  said 
Mrs.  Councill,  "  you'll  haf  to  put  up  with  it  jest  as 
if  y'  wa'n't  a  Congressman." 

"  I  guess  he  can  stand  a  few  days  what  we 
stand  all  the  while,"  Councill  interjected. 

There  was  a  good  deal  of  banter  during  the 
meal  about  "  downing  "  the  Congressman. 

Bradley's  physical  pride  was  roused  and  he  took 
his  place  in  the  field  determined  to  show  them 
their  mistake.  Night  came  bringing  weariness 
that  was  exhaustion,  and  next  morning  he  was  too 
lame  to  lift  a  fork.  It  emphasized  the  unnatural 
inactivity  into  which  he  had  fallen. 

He  improved  physically  and  by  the  end  of  the 
week  was  able  to  pitch  hay  with  the  rest.  The 
Judge  drove  up  for  him  on  Saturday  afternoon, 
and  found  him  pitching  hay  upon  the  stack  behind 
the  wind-break,  wet  with  sweat  and  covered  with 
timothy  bloom.  Councill  was  stacking. 

"  Hello,  Congressman,"  called  the  Judge. 

"  Get  off,  'n  take  right  hold,  Judge,"  said  Coun 
cill.  "  A  Judge  aint  no  better'n  a  Congressman, 
not  a  darn  bit." 


330  A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

"  I'll  take  a  hand  at  the  table,"  the  Judge  re 
plied. 

"  I've  had  about  enough  of  it,"  Bradley  said  to 
him  privately  while  Councill  was  putting  his  team 
in  the  barn.  "  I'm  better,  but  it  begins  to  seem 
like  a  waste  of  time." 

They  drove  home  that  night  through  the  still, 
warm,  star-lit  air,  like  father  and  son  in  slow  talk 
of  the  future. 

The  Judge  told  of  the  plan  for  the  fall  cam 
paign,  to  which  Bradley  listened  silently. 

"  We'll  win  yet  if  you  only  keep  your  grit." 

He  planned  also  a  broadening  out  of  their  law 
business.  A  new  block  had  just  been  built  and 
they  were  to  take  two  adjoining  rooms. 

"  You  need  a  library  of  your  own  and  a  chance 
to  work  where  you  won't  be  disturbed.  I'll  do 
the  consulting  business  and  leave  you  the  busi 
ness  in  court."  For  a  time  Bradley  was  interested 
and  occupied  in  moving  into  the  new  office  and 
in  getting  in  some  new  books  and  arranging  the 
shelves. 

But  the  narrowness,  the  quiet,  the  mental  stag 
nation  of  the  life  of  Rock  River  settled  down  on 
him  at  last.  There  were  days  when  he  walked 
the  floor  of  the  office,  wild  with  dismay  over  his 
prospect.  How  could  he  settle  down  again  to 


A    SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  331 

this  life  of  the  country  lawyer  ?  The  honors  and 
ease  that  accompanied  his  office,  the  larger  hori 
zon  of  Washington,  had  ruined  him  for  life  in  Rock 
River.  Love  might  have  enabled  him  to  bear  it, 
but  he  had  given  up  the  thought  of  marriage  and 
he  longed  for  the  larger  life  he  had  left. 

There  was  a  sorrowful  scene  when  the  Judge 
read  for  the  first  time  Bradley's  letter  of  with 
drawal  from  the  canvass.  The  Judge  was  deeply 
hurt  because  he  had  not  been  consulted,  and  was 
depressed  by  Bradley's  despair.  He  tried  to 
reason  with  him,  but  Bradley  was  in  no  mood  to 
reason. 

"I'm  out  of  it,  Judge ;  it's  of  no  use  to  go  on  ; 
I'm  beaten  ;  that's  all  there  is  about  it ;  we'd  only 
get  a  minority  vpte,  and  show  how  weak  we  are ; 
I'm  a  failure  as  a  politician,  and  every  other  way. 
I  give  it  up." 

The  Judge  sat  staring  at  him  without  words  to 
express  his  terrible  disappointment  and  alarm,  for 
the  condition  into  which  his  lieutenant  had  sunk 
alarmed  him  and  he  communicated  his  fear  to  Mrs. 
Brown. 

They  discussed  the  matter  that  night  in  bed. 
Bradley  heard  their  voices  still  mumbling  on  when 
he  sank  to  sleep. 

"  You  don't  suppose,  Mrs.  Brown,"  the  Judge 


332  A    SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

said  a  little  timidly,  "  it  can't  be  possible  it's,  a 
woman  " — 

"  If  it  had  been,  Mr.  Brown,  he  would  have  told 
me,"  she  said  convincingly.  "  It's  just  the  heat, 
and  then  his  defeat  has  told  on  him  more  than 
you  admit." 

"  If  I  felt  sure  of  that,  Mrs.  Brown,"  the  Judge 
said  in  answer,  "  but  I  don't.  All  ambition  seems 
to  have  gone  out  of  him.  I  hate  to  acknowledge 
myself  mistaken  in  the  man.  I've  believed  in 
Brad.  I  am  alarmed  about  him.  He  isn't  right ; 
I've  a  good  mind  to  send  him  down  to  St.  Louis 
and  Kansas  City  on  some  collection  cases." 

"  I  think  he'd  better  do  that,  Mr.  Brown,  if  he 
will  go." 

"  Oh,  he'll  go ;  he  wants  to  get  away  from  the 
campaign  ;  it  seems  to  wear  upon  him  some  way ; 
he  avoids  everybody,  and  won't  speak  of  it  at  all  if 
he  can  help  it." 

Bradley  was  very  glad  to  accept  the  offer,  and 
made  himself  ready  to  go  with  more  of  his  old- 
time  interest  than  he  had  shown  since  his  sick 
ness.  The  Judge  brightened  up  also,  and  said  to 
him,  as  he  was  about  to  step  into  the  train : 
"  Now,  Brad,  don't  hurry  back ;  take  your  time, 
and  enjoy  yourself.  Go  around  by  Chicago,  if  you 
feel  like  it." 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  333 

After  the  train  pulled  out,  and  they  were  riding 
home,  the  Judge  said  to  his  wife :  "  Mrs.  Brown, 
you  must  take  good  care  of  me  now.  I  want  to 
live  to  see  a  party  grow  up  to  the  level  of  that 
young  man's  ideas.  This  firm  is  crippled,  but  it  is 
not  in  the  hands  of  a  receiver,  Mrs.  Brown." 

"  I'll  be  the  receiver,"  Mrs.  Brown  said. 

The  Judge  shifted  the  lines  into  his  left  hand. 

The  horse  fell  into  a  walk.  "Mrs.  Brown,  if 
this  weren't  a  public  road,  I'd  be  tempted  to  put 
my  strong  right  arm  around  you  and  give  you  a 
squeeze." 

"  I  don't  see  any  one  looking,"  she  said,  and  her 
eyes  took  on  a  pathetic  suggestion  of  the  roguish- 
ness  her  face  must  have  worn  in  girlhood. 

He  put  his  arm  about  her,  and  gave  her  a  great 
hug.  After  that  she  laid  her  head  against  his 
shoulder,  and  cried  a  little  ;  the  Judge  sighed. 

"  Well,  we'll  have  to  get  reconciled  to  being 
alone,  I  suppose  ;  we  can't  expect  to  keep  him  al 
ways.  I  think  it's  a  woman,  Mrs.  Brown." 


334  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 


XXX. 

THE    GREAT    ROUND    UP. 

DURING  his  stay  in  St.  Louis  Bradley  found 
the  papers  filled  with  the  Alliance  movement  in 
Kansas,  and  looked  for  Ida's  name  each  morn 
ing.  She  was  in  the  western  part  of  the  State, 
but  moving  eastward  ;  and  when  a  few  days 
later  he  saw  her  announced  in  the  Kansas  City 
morning  papers  to  speak  at  the  great  "  round 
up  "  at  Chiquita,  he  packed  his  valise  on  the 
sudden  impulse,  and  started  on  the  next  train, 
determined  to  hear  her  speak  once  more  at 
least. 

It  was  just  noon  when  he  alighted  from  the 
train  at  Chiquita.  The  day  was  dry,  hazy,  re 
splendent  October.  The  wind  was  strong  but 
amiable,  and  was  full  of  the  smell  of  corn  and  of 
that  warm,  pungent,  smoky  odor  which  forms 
the  Indian  summer  atmosphere  of  the  West. 
The  wind  rushed  up  the  broad  street  past  him, 
carrying  the  dust  and  leaves  in  its  powerful 


A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  335 

clutches,  and  laying  strong  hands  upon  his  broad 
back.  The  sky  was  absolutely  without  speck, 
but  a  pale  mist  seemed  to  dim  the  radiance  of 
the  sun,  and  lent  a  milky  white  tone  to  the  blue 
of  the  sky. 

As  he  moved  slowly  off  up  the  street,  he  stud 
ied  the  town  and  the  people  from  the  standpoint 
his  life  in  the  East  had  given  him.  Everywhere 
was  an  air  of  security.  Men  moved  slower. 
Their  faces  were  less  anxious  and  more  placid  ; 
they  had  leisure  to  talk  as  they  met  at  the  shop 
door.  The  boss  seemed  farther  away.  But  all 
this  security  did  not  conceal  the  poverty  which 
he  now  saw  everywhere.  The  houses  were 
mainly  low,  unpainted  buildings,  containing 
only  three  or  four  cramped  rooms.  They  were 
a  little  smarter  in  appearance  than  the  country 
type,  but  not  much  more  commodious. 

"  I  wonder  if  you  are  one  of  the  speakers  here 
to-day,"  said  a  voice  behind  him. 

Bradley  turned,  and  saw  a  small  man  with  a 
stubby  mustache,  under  whose  derby  hat-rim  a 
pair  of  round  black  eyes  shone  with  a  keen 
glitter. 

"  No,  sir,  I'm  not." 

"  Beg  pardon,  no  harm  done.  Saw  you  get 
off  with  your  valise ;  knew  you  weren't  a  native 
by  the  cut  o'  y'r  jib.  Excuse  me,  I  hope  ?  " 


336  4-  SPOIL  OF  OFFICE. 

"  Certainly  ;  I'm  just  on  to  see  some  friends 
here." 

"Precisely;  I'm  up  from  Kansas  City  to  see 
the  big  '  round  up,'  as  they  call  it.  Here's 
my  card.  I  represent  what  our  Alliance 
friends  call  the  '  plutocratic  press.'  "  His  card 
stated  that  his  name  was  Mr.  Davis,  and  that 
he  represented  the  Chronicle.  "  I'm  afraid  the 
parade  must  be  over  by  this  time,  but  I  missed 
my  train.  Perhaps  we  had  better  step  along  a 
little." 

They  had  reached  the  main  street,  a  broad 
avenue  which  ran  north  and  south  across  a 
gentle  swell  in  the  prairie.  There  were  a  great 
many  people  on  the  sidewalks,  and  teams  were 
moving  in  various  directions  slowly  and  in 
apparent  confusion. 

"  Let's  go  over  here  to  the  Commercial  House ; 
that's  the  headquarters  of  all  the  brethren,"  said 
Davis. 

They  went  across  the  street  to  the  Commercial 
House,  which  they  found  full  of  men  in  groups, 
talking  very  earnestly,  but  quietly.  Most  of 
them  were  farmer-like  looking  figures,  big  and 
brown,  and  dressed  in  worn,  faded  clothing, 
but  here  and  there  a  young  man  stood,  wearing 
a  broad  white  hat,  and  with  a  gay  handkerchief 
knotted  loosely  about  his  neck.  On  all  sides 


A  SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  337 

could  be  heard  the  slightly-drawling  speech  of 
the  Kansan. 

They  went  up  to  a  little  balcony  which  pro 
jected  over  the  walk.  Four  or  five  other  young 
fellows  were  already  seated  there.  Some  of 
them  were  magnificent-looking  fellows,  keen, 
wholesome,  and  picturesque  in  their  dress. 

"  Excuse  me  now,  gentlemen,"  said  Davis, 
whipping  out  his  note-book.  "  I'm  a  reporter, 
and  here  they  come  !  " 

Up  the  broad  street,  under  that  soaring  sky, 
from  their  homes  upon  a  magnificently  fertile 
soil,  came  the  long  procession  of  revolting  farm 
ers.  There  were  no  bands  to  lead  them ;  no  flut 
tering  of  gay  flags  ;  no  cheers  from  the  bystand 
ers.  They  rode  in  grim  silence  for  the  most 
part,  as  if  at  a  funeral  of  their  dead  hopes — as  if 
their  mere  presence  were  a  protest. 

Everywhere  the  same  color  predominated — a 
russet  brown.  Their  faces  were  bronzed  and 
thin.  Their  beards  were  long  and  faded,  and 
tangled  like  autumn  corn  silk.  Their  gaunt, 
gnarled,  and  knotted  hands  held  the  reins  over 
their  equally  sad  and  sober  teams.  The  women 
looked  worn  and  thin,  and  sat  bent  forward  over 
the  children  in  their  laps.  The  dust  had  settled 
upon  their  ill-fitting  dresses.  There  were  no 
smart  carriages,  no  touch  of  gay  paint,  no  glit- 


338  A    SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

taring  new  harnesses ;  the  whole  procession  was 
keyed  down  among  the  most  desolate  and  sor 
rowful  grays,  browns,  and  drabs. 

Slowly  they  moved  past.  In  some  of  the 
wagons,  banners,  rudely  painted  on  cotton  cloth, 
uttered  the  farmers'  protest  in  words. 

"  Good  God  !  "  said  Davis,  as  he  dashed  away 
at  his  writing.  "  Did  you  ever  see  such  a 
funeral  in  your  life  ?  See  that  banner !  " 

DOWN  WITH  MONOPOLIES. 

"  All  right,  down  with  them  ;  you're  the  doc 
tor,"  muttered  Davis  as  he  wrote. 

FREE  TRADE,  FREE  LAND,  MONEY  AT  COST, 
TRANSPORTATION  AT  COST. 

"  Now  you  are  shouting,  brother." 

EQUAL  RIGHTS  TO  ALL  is  AS  DEAR  TO  THE 

HEART  OF  THE  FARMER  AS  IT  WAS  IN 

THE  DAYS  OF  OUR  FOREFATHERS. 

"  Well,  now,  sure  you  mean  that  —  that's  all. 
Stop  talking,  and  act." 

Bradley  remained  perfectly  silent  through  it 
all.  As  these  farmers  passed  before  his  eyes, 
there  came  into  his  mind  vast  conceptions  which 
thrilled  him  till  he  shuddered  —  a  realization 
that  here  was  an  army  of  veterans,  men  grown 
old  in  the  ferocious  struggle  against  injustice 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  339 

and  the  apparent  niggardliness  .of  nature, — a 
grim  and  terrible  battle-line.  It  was  made  up, 
throughout  its  entire  length,  of  old  or  middle- 
aged  men  and  women  with  stooping  shoulders, 
and  eyes  dim  with  toil  and  suffering.  There 
was  nothing  of  lovely  girlhood  or  elastic,  smil 
ing  boyhood  ;  not  a  touch  of  color  or  grace  in 
the  long  line  of  march.  It  was  sombre,  silent, 
ominous,  and  resolute. 

It  appeared  to  him  the  most  pathetic,  tragic, 
and  desperate  revolt  against  oppression  and 
wrong  ever  made  by  the  American  farmer.  It 
was  the  Grange  movement  broadened,  deep 
ened,  and  made  more  desperate  and  wide-reach 
ing  by  changing  conditions. 

At  Davis'  suggestion  they  went  off  down  the 
street,  joining  the  crowd  on  the  sidewalk,  which 
was  streaming  away  towards  the  fair  grounds. 
A  roasted  ox  was  to  be  served  there,  and 
speeches  were  to  follow.  The  road  kept  on  to 
the  south,  down  over  the  gentle  slope,  and 
turned  aside  under  the  jack-oaks,  and  led 
through  a  wooden  gate  into  an  enclosure  which 
was  used  for  the  county  fair.  Down  under  the 
great  shed  by  the  side  of  the  race-track  the  peo 
ple  swarmed  in  thousands. 

They  were  all  standing  about  the  rude  tables, 
behind  which  helpers  were  busily  hewing  off 


340  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

great  lumps  of  beef  and  mutton,  and  slicing  fat 
slabs  of  bread,  which  were  snatched  and  carried 
away  in  little  paper  plates  by  the  hungry  men. 
Here  and  there  beside  their  wagons,  families 
were  eating  a  dinner  of  their  own. 

The  same  sober  color  predominated.  There 
was  a  little  more  life  and  gayety  in  their  speech 
here.  Their  grim,  harsh  faces  relaxed  a  little, 
and  now  and  then  broke  into  unwonted  smiles 
as  they  stood  about  devouring  their  food  and 
discussing  the  meeting,  which  they  counted  a 
success.  Everywhere  were  hearty  handshakings 
and  fraternal  greetings. 

All  about  the  grounds  stood  feeble  women  in 
ill-fitting  clothes,  with  tired  children  in  their 
aching  arms,  a  painful  sag  in  their  weakened 
loins.  Bradley  marvelled  to  think  why  such 
festivals  had  ever  seemed  mirthful  and  happy 
to  him.  He  wondered  if  there  used  to  be  so 
many  tired  faces  at  the  Grange  picnics  in  Iowa. 
Were  the  farmers  really  less  comfortable  and 
happy,  or  had  he  simply  grown  clear-sighted  ? 

Kansas  as  it  stood  there  was  Democratic. 
Poverty  has  few  distinctions  among  its  victims. 
The  negro  stood  close  beside  his  white  brother 
in  adversity,  and  there  was  a  certain  relation  and 
resemblance  in  their  stiffened  walk,  poor  cloth 
ing,  and  dumb,  imploring,  empty  hands.  There 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  34.} 

lay  in  the  whole  scene  something  tremendous, 
something  far-reaching.  The  movement  it  rep. 
resented  had  the  majesty,  if  not  the  volcanic 
energy,  of  the  rise  of  the  peasants  of  the 
Vendee. 

After  the  dinner  was  eaten,  the  people  grad 
ually  took  their  seats  on  the  grand  stand,  facing 
a  platform  upon  which  the  speakers  were  al 
ready  assembled.  Bradley  looked  about  for  Ida, 
but  she  had  not  come.  The  choir  amused  the 
people  with  a  few  Alliance  songs,  whose  char 
acter  may  be  indicated  by  their  titles  :  "  Join 
the  Alliance  Step,"  "  Get  off  the  Fence,  Brother," 
"  We're  Marching  Along,"  etc. 

The  people  were  watching  eagerly  for  Ida's 
appearance  ;  and  when  she  came  in  view,  es 
corted  by  the  chairman,  the  people  on  the  plat 
form  swarmed  about  to  greet  her,  and  hid  her 
from  Bradley 's  eager  eyes.  He  was  tremulous 
with  emotion  as  the  chairman  introduced  her. 
It  carried  him  back  to  the  day  when  he  first 
saw  her. 

As  she  rose  to  speak  now,  it  was  in  a  broad, 
garish  light.  No  dapple  of  shadows  was  there, 
no  rustle  of  leaves,  no  green,  mossy  trunks  of 
trees.  She  stood  on  a  bare  platform  facing  five 
thousand  faces  under  a  shed-like  roof. 

She  was  changed  too.     She  was  now  a  mature 


342  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

woman.  There  was  nothing  girlish  about  her 
talk  or  her  manner.  There  was  decision  in  the 
tones  of  her  voice,  and  a  sense  of  power  in  the 
poise  of  her  head  and  in  the  lofty  gesture  of  her 
hand.  She  no  longer  made  a  set  oration.  She 
talked  straight  at  her  audiences. 

"  I  wish  the  whole  world  could  see  this  meet 
ing,"  she  said,  "  and  understand  it  for  what  it  is. 
It  is  an  expression  of  a  movement,  not  the  move 
ment  itself.  It  is  a  demand  ;  but  the  revolt  that 
lies  back  of  the  demand  is  greater  than  the  ex 
pression  of  it.  The  demand,  the  expression,  may 
change,  the  form  of  our  whole  movement  may 
pass  away ;  but  the  spirit  that  makes  it  great, 
that  carries  it  forward,  is  invincible  and  imper 
ishable.  All  the  ages  have  contributed  to  this 
movement.  It  is  an  outgrowth  of  the  past. 

"  The  heart  and  centre  of  this  movement  is  a 
demand  for  justice,  not  for  ourselves  alone,  but 
for  the  toiling  poor  wherever  found.  If  this 
movement  is  higher  and  deeper  and  broader 
than  the  Grange  was,  it  is  because  its  sympa 
thies  are  broader.  With  me,  it  is  no  longer  a 
question  of  legislating  for  the  farmer  ;  it  is  a 
question  of  the  abolition  of  industrial  slavery." 

The  tremendous  cheer  which  broke  forth  at 
this  point  showed  that  the  conception  of  the 
movement  had  widened  in  the  minds  of  the  peo- 


A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  343 

Die  themselves  ;  it  was  no  longer  a  class  move 
ment.  It  stirred  Bradley  as  if  some  swift  elec 
tric  wind  had  blown  upon  him 

"  Wherever  a  man  is  robbed,  wherever  a  man 
toils  and  the  fruits  of  his  toil  are  taken  from 
him  ;  wherever  the  frosty  lash  of  winter  stings 
or  the  tear  of  poverty  scalds,  there  the  principle 
of  our  order  reaches." 

As  she  continued,  the  people  turned  to  each 
other  with  shining  faces.  She  was  thrilling  them 
by  her  passionate,  simple  utterance  of  their  in 
nermost  thoughts. 

While  she  spoke  Bradley  had  eyes  for  noth 
ing  else  ;  but  when  she  sat  down  amid  wild 
applause,  and  the  choir  rose  to  sing,  he  turned 
to  look  back  over  the  audience,  banked  there  in 
rows  on  the  hard,  wooden  seats,  and  felt  again 
its  majesty  and  its  desolation.  There  was  the 
same  absence  of  beauty,  youth,  color,  and  grace 
that  he  had  noticed  in  the  procession.  Every 
where  worn  and  weary  women  in  sombre 
dresses,  a  wistful  light  in  their  faces,  as  if  they 
felt  dimly  the  difference  between  the  lithe  and 
beautiful  figure  of  the  girl  and  their  own  stiff 
ened  joints  and  emaciated  forms. 

The  great  throng  sat  silent,  listening  intently, 
their  eyes  fixed  upon  the  speaker.  They  were 
there  for  a  purpose  ;  they  were  there  to  find  out 
23 


344  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

why  it  was  that  their  toil,  their  sobriety,  their 
self-deprivation,  left  them  at  middle  life  with 
distorted  and  stiffened  limbs,  gray  hair,  and 
empty  hands.  They  were  terribly  in  earnest, 
and  Bradley  felt  his  kinship  with  them.  They 
were  his  kind. 

The  music,  which  set  them  wild  with  enthu 
siasm,  was  of  the  simplest  and  most  stirring  sort. 
That  it  pleased  them  so  much,  showed  all  too 
clearly  how  barren  their  lives  were  of  songs 
and  color  and  light. 

The  people  pressed  forward  to  speak  a  word 
to  Ida ;  and  Bradley,  yielding  to  the  pressure 
of  the  crowd,  was  carried  forward  with  it.  It 
stirred  him  very  deeply  to  see  the  love  and  ad 
miration  they  all  felt  for  her.  On  all  sides  he 
heard  words  of  affection  which  came  straight 
from  the  heart.  Their  utter  sincerity  could 
not  be  doubted.  He  knew  he  ought  to  turn 
and  go  away  before  she  saw  him,  but  he  could 
not 

Something  in  his  face  attracted  a  grizzled  old 
farmer,  who  was  moving  along  beside  him,  and 
he  turned  with  a  beaming  look. 

"  How's  that  for  a  speech,  eh  ?  Did  y'  ever 
hear  the  like  of  it?" 

"  No,  I  never  did." 


A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  34.5 

"  Ain't  she  a  wonder,  now  ?  D'  you  s'pose 
there's  another  woman  like  her  in  the  world?" 

Bradley  shook  his  head.  He  was  sure  of 
that ! 

A  gaunt  old  woman,  who  wore  a  dark  green- 
check  sunbonnet  hanging  at  the  back  of  her 
head,  put  in  a  word. 

"  Shows  what  a  woman  can  do  if  you  give  'er 
a  chance." 

"  Hello,  Sister  Slocum,  you're  always  on 
hand." 

"Like  a  sore  thumb,  Brother  Tobey,  an'  I 
don't  know  of  any  one  got  a  bigger  interest  in 
downin'  the  plutes  than  the  farmers'  wives — 
do  you  ?' 

It  was  pathetic,  it  was  unforgettable,  to  see 
these  people  as  they  stood  beside  the  rounded, 
supple,  splendid  figure  of  the  speaker  and  took 
her  strong-,  smooth  hand  in  their  work-scarred, 

O  ' 

leathery  palms — these  women  of  many  children 
and  never-ending  work,  bent  by  toil  above  the 
wash-tub  and  the  churn,  shut  out  from  all  things 
that  humanize  and  make  living  something  more 
than  a  brute  struggle  against  hunger  and  cold. 

Ida  greeted  them  smilingly,  but  her  face  was 
quivering  with  a  sadness  which  she  could  hardly 
conceal.  Bradley  pushed  on  desperately  toward 
her.  At  length,  as  the  crowd  began  to  thin  out, 


346  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

he  moved  up  and  thrust  his  long  arm  in  over 
the  shoulders  of  the  women. 

"Won't  you  shake  hands  with  me,  too?  "he 
said,  and  his  voice  trembled. 

She  turned  quickly,  and  her  face  flashed  into 
a  smile — a  smile  different,  somehow,  from  that 
with  which  she  had  greeted  the  others,  and 
they  saw  it.  It  warmed  his  melancholy  soul 
like  a  sudden  ray  of  June  sunlight. 

Her  hand  met  his,  strong  and  firm  in  its 
grasp.  "  Ah  !  Mr.  Talcott,  I'm  glad  to  see  you." 

The  farmers'  wives  began  to  leave,  saying 
good-by  over  and  over  again.  They  clung  to 
the  girl's  hand,  gazing  at  her  with  wistful  eyes. 
It  seemed  as  if  they  could  not  bear  to  let  her  go 
out  of  their  lives  again. 

"  We  may  never  see  you  again,  dearie,"  one 
old  woman  said,  "but  we  never'll  forgit  you. 
You've  helped  us.  I  reckon  life  won't  seem 
quite  so  hard  now.  We  kind  o'  see  a  glimmer 
of  a  way  out." 

The  tears  were  on  her  face,  and  Ida  put  her 
arms  about  the  old  lady's  neck  and  kissed  her, 
and  then  turned  away,  unable  to  speak.  The 
chairman,  followed  by  Bradley  and  Ida,  made 
his  way  down  the  steps  and  out  on  the  grounds, 
where  the  streams  of  people  were  setting  back 
toward  the  city.  The  chairman  placed  Miss 


A  SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  347 

Wilbur  in  a  carriage,  and  said,  "  I'll  see  you  at 
the  hotel." 

"  Won't  you  ride  ?  "  she  asked. 

"  No,  thank  you,"  he  replied,  with  a  jovial 
gleam  in  his  eyes,  and  Ida  said  no  more  in  pro 
test.  Bradley,  in  great  trepidation,  took  a  seat 
beside  her. 

"  Well,  Brother  Talcott,  what  do  you  think 
of  such  a  meeting  as  that  ?  "  she  asked,  after  the 
carriage  started,  turning  upon  him  with  sudden 
intensity. 

"  It  was  like  that  first  meeting  of  the  Grange, 
when  I  heard  you  speak  first,  only  this  is  more 
earnest — more  desperate,  I  should  say." 

"  Yes,  these  people  are  desperate.  It  is  im 
possible  for  the  world  to  realize  the  earnestness 
of  these  farmers.  Just  see  the  interest  the 
women-folks  take  in  it !  No  other  movement 
in  history — not  even  the  anti-slavery  cause — 
appealed  to  the  women  like  this  movement  here 
in  Kansas.  Why,  sometimes  I  go  home  and 
walk  the  floor  like  a  crazy  woman — I  get  so 
wrought  up  over  it.  While  our  great  politicians 
split  hairs  on  the  tariff,  people  starve.  The  time 
has  come  for  rebellion." 

Bradley  was  silent.  He  sympathized  with 
her  feeling,  but  he  could  not  see  very  much 
hope  in  a  revolt. 


348  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

Her  eyes  glowed  with  the  fire  of  prophecy. 
Bradley  gazed  at  her  with  apprehensive  eyes. 
She  seemed  unwholesomely  excited.  But  she 
broke  into  a  hearty  laugh,  and  said:  "You 
stare.  Well,  I  won't  lecture  you  any  more. 
What  did  you  do  in  Washington  ?  " 

"  Nothing,"  he  replied  ;  and  there  was  some 
thing  silencing  in  his  voice. 

She  glanced  at  his  face  sharply.  She  hesitated 
an  instant,  then  asked  : 

"  Do  you  go  back?" 

"No,  my  political  career  is  ended.  I  was 
knifed  in  the  convention." 

"  You  are  young." 

"  I'm  not  young  enough  to  outgrow  such  a 
defeat  as  that.  I'm  done." 

This  mood  seemed  singularly  unlike  him,  as 
she  had  known  him  before.  She  seized  upon 
the  situation. 

"Come  with  us.  '  There  is  more  wool  and 
flax  in  the  fields,'  "  she  quoted. 

"  I  can't.  I  don't  see  things  as  you  do — I 
mean  I  don't  see  any  cure." 

She  laid  her  hand  on  his  arm.  "  I'm  going  to 
convert  you.  Will  you  attend  one  more  meet 
ing  with  me? " 

"  I'll  go  wherever  you  say,"  he  answered, 
with  an  attempt  at  gallantry. 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  349 

"  I  want  to  take  you  with  me  to  show  you 
what  the  people  are  doing,  and  what  my  work 
is.  You're  to  ask  no  questions,  but  just  make 
yourself  ready  to  go." 

Bradley 's  mind  was  in  a  whirl.  Ida  seemed 
so  different — not  at  all  like  that  last  letter  she 
had  written  to  him.  He  felt  rather  than  per 
ceived  the  change  in  her.  She  left  him  at  the 
hotel  door  and  her  parting  hand-clasp  quickened 
his  breath.  An  indefinite  and  unreasonable 
exultation  filled  his  eyes  with  light.  In  the 
privacy  of  his  room  he  croaked  a  few  notes 
before  he  realized  that  he  could  not  sing.  His 
gloomy  sky  had  let  fall  a  sudden  ray  of  dazzling 
sunshine. 


350  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 


XXXI. 

IDA    SHOWS    BRADLEY    THE    WAY    OUT. 

HE  did  not  see  her  again  till  the  next  after 
noon.  She  came  out  into  the  ante-room  in  the 
hotel  looking  so  lovely  he  could  hardly  believe 
his  good  fortune. 

"  Now  you  are  in  my  hands,  Mr.  Talcott." 

He  noticed  that  she  did  not  call  him 
"  Brother "  Talcott.  He  was  as  boyish  and 
timid  as  ever,  quite  subdued  by  her  presence, 
and  followed  her  out  to  the  omnibus  in  a  daze 
of  delight.  He  had  forgotten  all  he  knew,  but 
he  was  very  content  to  listen. 

She,  however,  did  not  seem  at  all  self-con 
scious.  She  wore  a  large  cloak  and  warm 
gloves,  and  under  the  wide  rim  of  her  black  hat 
her  face  was  like  silver  and  her  eyes  like  stars. 
A  delicate  perfume  came  from  her  dress,  and 
reached  him  across  the  carriage. 

"  It  takes  about  an  hour  to  go  down,"  she 
said,  as  they  alighted  and  stood  waiting  on  the 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  351 

platform,  "  and  then  the  '  college '  is  some  dis 
tance  away  from  the  station." 

It  was  an  unspeakable  pleasure  to  sit  beside 
her  in  the  train  and  listen  to  her  talk.  It  was 
one  of  the  things  he  had  dreamed  of  so  many 
times,  but  had  really  never  dared  to  expect. 

"  The  reason  I  want  you  to  attend  this  meet 
ing  is  because  the  schoolhouse,  after  all,  is  the 
place  where  a  real  reform  among  the  farmers 
must  have  its  base.  I'd  like  to  see  you  working 
with  us,"  she  said,  turning  suddenly  towards 
him. 

"  I  would  if  I  felt  as  you  do  about  it,  but  I 
can't." 

"  Why  not  ?  You're  really  one  of  us.  Your 
letters  showed  me  that.  Why  can't  you  work 
with  us  ?" 

"  Well,  I'll  tell  you  :  because  it  looks  like  a 
last  resort.  It  would  look  as  though,  after  hav 
ing  been  kicked  out  of  both  parties,  I  had  gone 
into  the  third  party  out  of  revenge." 

"  Well,  I  see  some  force  in  that.  But  you 
can't  be  idle.  You  are  too  strong  and  fine  to  be 
beaten  so.  Do  you  know,  I  think  it  was  provi 
dential  that  you  were  defeated."  She  turned  to 
him  now,  and  there  was  something  in  the  near 
ness  of  her  face  that  awed  him.  "Your  letters 
to  me  told  me  more  than  you  knew.  I  read  be- 


352  A    SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

neath  the  lines  ;  I  saw  how  nearly  the  atmos 
phere  of  Congress  had  ruined  you.  The  greed 
of  office  had  got  hold  of  you — now  hadn't  it  ?  " 

He  dropped  his  eyes.  "  Something  got  hold 
of  me,"  he  said  at  length. 

She  went  on  in  a  voice  which  moved  him  so 
deeply  he  could  not  reply.  "  I've  wanted  to  see 
you.  I  believed  in  you,  and  it  made  my  heart 
ache  to  hear  your  despondent  worcs  yesterday. 
Life  is  a  battle  at  best.  You  can't  afford  to  sur 
render  so  early.  The  way  of  the  thinker  is  al 
ways  hard.  Take  up  your  sword  again.  Oh, 
it's  glorious  to  be  in  such  a  revolution  !  I  never 
was  so  happy  in  my  life.  Happy  and  sad  too  ! 
I  never  was  so  sad.  Now  thafs  like  a  woman, 
isn't  it  ?  What  I  really  mean  is  that  I  never 
saw  so  clearly  the  poverty  and  helplessness  of 
the  people  before,  and  it  makes  me  happy  to 
think  I  can  do  something  for  them." 

Bradley  sat  silently  looking  at  her  with  his 
big  brown  eyes.  He  was  thrilling  with  the  vi 
bration  of  her  voice  and  the  touch  of  her  hand 
on  his  arm. 

She  colored  a  little,  and  dropped  her  eyes 
suddenly.  "  There  I  go  again  !  I  must  keep 
the  oratorical  tone  out  of  my  voice.  Don't  mind 
my  preaching  at  you,  will  you?" 

"  I  like  it,"  said  Bradley,  smiling.     He  had  a 


4    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  353 

beautiful  smile,  she  noticed  ;  arjd  he  looked  so 
big  and  strong  and  thoughtful,  she  suddenly 
grew  a  little  timid  before  him. 

The  warning  whistle  of  the  engine  announced 
they  were  nearing  a  crossing,  and  she  said,  "  I 
think  this  is  our  station." 

The  wind  was  strong  and  cold  as  they  stepped 
out  upon  the  platform.  It  was  nearly  six 
o'clock,  and  quite  dark.  They  stood  for  a  few 
moments  in  the  lee  of  the  one-room  depot,  look 
ing  about  in  the  obscurity. 

"  Well,  what  are  we  to  do  now  ?  "  Bradley  in 
quired. 

She  seemed  at  a  loss.  "  Really,  I  don't  know. 
Colonel  Barker  was  to  meet  me  here,  I  believe." 

Bradley  took  her  arm.  "  There's  a  light  up 
there  in  the  cold,"  he  said.  "  Let's  go  for  that ; 
and  if  you'll  tell  me  the  name  of  the  school- 
house,  I'll  see  that  we  get  a  team,  and  get  out 
there." 

In  the  cold  and  darkness  she  lor,t  something 
of  her  imperiousness,  and  yielded  herself  to  his 
guidance  with  a  delicious  return  to  woman's 
weakness  in  the  face  of  practical  material  de 
tails.  To  Bradley  this  seemed  vastly  signifi 
cant  and  his  spirits  rose.  He  grew  quite  Tace- 
tious  and  talkative  for  him. 

"  It  seems  to  me  that's  a  store  up  there;  must 


354:  A   SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

be  a  town  near  by.  Perhaps  this  is  the  town. 
Two  houses  on  one  side  and  three  houses  on 
the  other  make  a  town  in  the  West.  We  must 
get  some  supper,  too;  any  provision  for  that?" 

"  No,  I  left  the  whole  matter  in  Colonel  Bar 
ker's  hands." 

The  road  ran  up  the  huge  treeless  swell  of 
prairie  toward  the  lighted  windows  of  a  grocery 
store. 

Together  they  climbed  the  hill,  and  opposite 
the  store  they  came  upon  a  gate  on  which  was 
a  battered  sign,  "  Hotel  ;  meals  twenty-five 
cents."  Bradley  knocked  on  the  door,  but 
there  was  no  reply. 

After  waiting  a  decent  while,  he  said,  "  If  it's 
a  hotel,  we  might  as  well  go  right  in  without 
knocking." 

They  entered  a  bare  little  room  whose  only 
resemblance  to  a  hotel  bar-room  was  in  its  rusty 
cannon  stove  set  in  the  midst  of  a  box  of  saw 
dust,  and  a  map  of  Kansas  hanging  on  the  wall. 
Bradley  knocked  on  the  inner  door,  and  it  was 
opened  by  a  faded  little  woman  with  a  sad  face. 

"  We'd  like  supper  for  two,"  Bradley  said. 

"All  right!"  she  replied,  moving  forward  to 
the  stove,  which  she  rattled  in  order  to  give  her 
time  to  scrutinize  Ida,  who  sat  on  the  lounge  by 
the  window.  "  Lay  off  your  things,  won't  ye?" 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  355 

Bradley  helped  Ida  to  lay  off  her  cloak.  It 
was  incredible  what  pleasure  it  gave  him  to  do 
these  little  things  for  her.  He  left  her  a  few 
minutes  to  go  out  and  look  up  the  matter  of  the 
team.  When  he  returned  he  found  Ida  leaning 
back  wearily  in  a  big  chair,  her  face  very  grave 
and  pale.  He  told  her  that  a  team  would  be 
ready  soon. 

"  You  can  come  right  out  to  supper,"  an 
nounced  the  landlady  ;  and  they  went  out  into 
the  kitchen,  where  the  table  sat.  It  was  lighted 
with  a  kerosene  lamp  that  threw  dull-blue  shad 
ows  among  the  dishes,  and  dazzled  the  eyes  of 
the  eaters  with  its  horizontal  rays  of  light.  The 
table  had  a  large  quantity  of  boiled  beef  and 
potatoes  and  butter,  which  each  person  was  evi 
dently  expected  to  hew  off  for  himself.  The  des 
sert  was  pumpkin-pie,  which  they  both  greeted 
with  smiles. 

"Ah,  that  looks  like  the  pie  mother  used  to 
make,"  Ida  said,  as  the  landlady  put  it  down. 

"  Waal,  I'd  know.  Seems  to  me  the  crust  is  a 
leetle  too  short.  I've  ben  havin'  pretty  good 
luck  lately  ;  but  this  pumpkin  weren't  just  the 
very  best.  It  was  one  of  them  thin-rinded  ones, 
you  know.  Pumpkins  weren't  extry  good ; 
weren't  thunder  enough,  I  reckon,  this  sum 
mer." 


356  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

After  supper  Bradley  went  out,  leaving  Ida 
with  the  landlady,  who  was  delighted  with  her 
listener. 

"  Here's  our  team,"  called  Bradley,  coming  to 
Ida's  relief  a  few  minutes  later.  "  It  ain't  a  very 
gay  rig ;  but  it's  the  best  I  could  do,"  he  ex 
plained,  as  he  helped  her  in  and  tucked  the 
quilts  about  her.  "  I  had  to  skirmish  in  two  or 
three  houses  to  get  these  quilts,  for  the  wind  is 
sharp  ;  you'll  need  them." 

"  Thank  you ;  I'm  afraid  you've  given  me 
more  than  my  share." 

There  was  only  one  seat,  and  Bradley  took 
his  place  beside  Ida,  while  the  driver  crouched 
on  the  bottom  of  the  clattering  old  democrat 
wagon.  Ida  was  concerned  for  him. 

"  Haven't  you  another  seat?"  she  inquired. 

"  No  m'm.  I  don't  need  any,"  he  replied,  in  a 
slow  drawl.  "  I  tried  to  borrow  one  from  Sam 
Smalley,  but  they're  all  usin'  theirs.  I'd  jest  as 
soon  set  here." 

There  was  something  singularly  attractive  in 
his  voice — a  simplicity  and  candor  like  a  child's, 
and  a  suggestion  of  weakness  that  went  straight 
to  Ida's  tender  heart. 

"  But  }rou'll  get  cold." 

"Oh,  no  m'm  ;  I'm  used  to  it.  Half  the  time 
I  don't  wear  no  gloves  in  winter  'less  I'm  han- 


A    SPOIL    OF   OFFICE.  357 

dlin'  things  with  snow  on  'em,"  he  said,  to  reas 
sure  her. 

They  moved  of!  down  the  ravine  to  the 
north,  the  keen  wind  in  their  faces.  There  was 
no  moon,  and  it  was  very  dark,  notwithstanding 
the  light  of  the  stars. 

"  How  beautiful  the  sky  is  to-night !  "  said  Ida, 
in  a  low  voice. 

"  Magnificent ! "  Bradley  replied  ;  but  he 
thought  of  her,  not  the  stars.  The  team 
started  up,  and  the  worn  old  seat  swayed  from 
side  to  side  so  perilously  that  Bradley  with  in 
credible  audacity  put  his  arm  around,  and 
grasped  the  end  of  the  seat  on  the  other  side 
of  Ida. 

"  I'm  afraid  you'll  fall  out,"  he  hastened  to  ex 
plain.  She  made  no  reply,  and  if  she  smiled  he 
did  not  know  it. 

They  climbed  the  slope  on  the  other  side  of 
the  bridge,  and  entered  upon  the  vast  rolling 
prairie,  whose  dim  swells  rose  and  fell  against 
the  stars.  The  roads  were  frightful — gullied 
with  rain,  and  full  of  bowlders  on  the  hillsides. 
The  darkness  added  a  certain  wild  charm  and 
mystery  to  it  all. 

"  How  lonesome  it  seems  !  What  a  terrible 
place  to  live !  "  said  Ida  with  a  shudder. 

"  Civilization  hasn't  made  much  of  an  impress 


358  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

here,  that's  sure.  How  long-  has  this  prairie 
been  settled  ?  " 

"  'Bout  twenty-two  years,"  answered  the 
driver ;  and,  being  started,  he  prattled  away, 
telling  the  story  of  his  pitiful,  tragic  life — a  life 
of  incessant  toil  and  hardship.  Men  cheated 
and  trampled  upon  him ;  society  and  govern 
ment  ignored  him  ;  science  and  religion  never 
knew  him,  and  cared  nothing  for  him — and  yet 
this  atom  bore  it  all  with  unapplauded  heroism. 

There  was  something  in  his  voice  which  made 
the  hearts  of  his  hearers  ache.  Ida  glanced  up 
at  Bradley  now  and  then,  at  the  most  dramatic 
points,  and  they  seemed  to  grow  nearer  to 
gether  in  their  sympathy. 

"  There's  the  schoolhouse,"  said  the  driver  joy 
ously,  pointing  at  a  dim  red  light  ahead.  They 
had  been  riding  for  nearly  an  hour  across  the 
treeless  swells  of  prairie,  and  the  wind  had  pen 
etrated  their  very  blood.  Ida  was  shivering, 
and  Bradley  was  suffering  with  her  out  of  sym 
pathy.  He  longed  to  fold  her  close  in  his  arms 
and  shield  her  from  the  wind. 

Suddenly  the  schoolhouse  loomed  upon  their 
eyes.  It  was  a  bare  little  box,  set  on  the  wind 
swept  crest  of  a  hill,  not  a  tree  to  shelter  it  from 
the  winds  of  winter  or  the  sun  of  summer. 
Teams  were  hitched  about  at  the  fences,  and 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  359 

others  could  be  heard  on  the  hard  ground,  clat 
tering  along  the  lanes.  Men  coming  across  the 
fields  on  foot  could  be  heard  talking.  The 
plain  seemed  cold  and  desolate  and  illimitable. 

Bradley  helped  Ida  to  alight,  and  hurried  her 
towards  the  open  door,  from  which  the  hum  of 
talk  came  forth.  They  found  the  room  crammed 
with  men  and  women — the  women  all  on  one 
side  of  the  room  and  the  men  as  decorously  on 
the  other,  or  standing  about  the  huge  cannon 
stove,  that  was  filled  with  soft  coal,  and  sending 
out  a  flood  of  heat  and  gas.  They  stopped  talk 
ing  when  they  saw  the  strangers  enter,  and  gazed 
at  them  curiously. 

Then  a  tall  man,  with  a  military  cut  of  beard, 
pushed  his  way  forward. 

"  Good-evenin',  Sisto'  Wilboo,  I'm  right  glad 
to  see  you." 

"  I  am  glad  to  see  you,  Brother  Barker." 

"  I  must  apologize  fo'  not  coming  myself." 

"  This  is  Mr.  Talcott,"  Ida  interrupted,  intro 
ducing  Bradley. 

"  Glad  to  meet  you,  Brotho'  Talcott.  As  I 
was  sayin',  Sisto'  Wilboo,  I  was  late,  and  so  I 
sent  Brotho'  Williams.  I  am  ver'  sawry  " — 

"  Oh,  no  matter  ;  we  got  here." 

Colonel  Barker  introduced  them  to  the  people 
who  stood  near.  The  crowded  condition  of  the 
24 


360  A  SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

room  did  not  allow  of  a  general  introduction, 
although  they  all  looked  longingly  at  Ida,  whom 
they  knew  by  reputation. 

At  first  glance  the  effect  was  unpromising. 
Most  of  the  men  had  their  hats  on.  All  of 
them  were  fresh  from  the  corn-fields,  and  their 
hands  were  hard  as  leather,  and  cracked  and 
seamed,  and  lumpy  with  great  muscles.  Every 
man  wore  cots  upon  his  fingers,  which  were 
rasped  to  the  quick  with  husking.  Everyone 
had  a  certain  unkempt  look,  and  everywhere 
color  was  in  low  tones :  browns,  grays,  drabs ; 
nothing  light  and  gay  about  dress  or  bearing. 
Bradley  noticed  a  few  girls  in  the  middle  seats, 
but  only  a  few. 

It  looked  like  an  uncouth  audience  for  Ida  to 
address. 

Colonel  Barker  called  the  meeting  to  order, 
and  made  an  astonishingly  able  and  dignified 
speech.  He  then  asked  Brother  Williams  to 
say  a  word. 

Brother  Williams  was  a  middle-aged  farmer 
with  unkempt  hair.  His  clothes  were  faded  to 
a  russet  brown  ;  his  collarless  neck  was  like 
wrinkled  leather,  and  his  fingers  were  covered 
with  cots ;  but  he  was  a  most  impressive  orator. 
His  words  were  well  chosen,  and  his  gestures 
dignified  and  appropriate.  He  spoke  in  a  con- 


A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE,  361 

versational  way,  but  with  great  power  and 
sincerity.  He  ended  by  introducing  "  Sister 
Wilbur." 

Ida  began  to  speak  in  a  low  voice,  as  if  talking 
to  friends :  "  Brothers  and  sisters,  this  is  not 
the  first  time  I've  driven  across  the  Western 
prairies  in  a  wagon  to  speak  at  such  a  meeting 
as  this,  and  it  isn't  the  last  time.  I  expect  to 
continue  to  speak  just  as  long  as  there  is  a 
wrong  to  be  righted,  just  as  long  as  it  does  you 
good  to  have  me  come." 

"  That  will  be  while  you  live,"  said  the  colonel 
gallantly. 

"  I  hope  not,"  she  replied  quickly.  "  I  hope 
to  see  our  reforms  established  before  the  gray 
comes  into  my  hair.  If  we  are  true  to  our 
selves  ;  if  our  leaders  are  true  to  themselves ;  if 
they  do  not  become  spoils  of  office  " — she  looked 
at  Bradley,  and  the  others  followed  her  glance ; 
she  saw  her  mistake,  and  colored  a  little  as  she 
went  on — "  if  they  are  true  to  their  best  con 
victions,  and  speak  the  new  thoughts  that  come 
to  them,  poverty  will  not  increase  her  dominion." 

She  closed  by  saying :  "  We  have  with  us  to 
night  a  very  distinguished  young  Congressman 
from  Iowa, — the  Honorable  Mr.  Talcott.  I 
hope  he  will  feel  like  saying  something  to  you." 

While  the  people  stamped  and  clapped  hands, 


362  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

Ida  went  over  to  Bradley  and  said  :  "  You  must 
talk  to  them.  Tell  them  just  what  you  think." 

Bradley  rose.  He  would  have  done  more 
had  she  asked  it.  He  began  by  speaking  of  the 
Grange  and  its  decline,  and  of  the  apparent 
hopelessness  of  expecting  the  farmers  to  remain 
united. 

"  I  am  not  quite  convinced  the  time  has  come 
for  a  political  movement.  If  I  were,  I'd  join  it, 
even  though  some  of  the  planks  in  your  plat 
form  were  objectionable,  for  I  am  a  farmer. 
My  people  for  generations  have  been  tillers  of 
the  soil.  They  have  always  been  poor.  All 
the  blood  in  my  heart  goes  out,  therefore, 
towards  the  farmer  and  the  farmers'  move 
ment.  It  seems  a  hopeless  thing  to  fight  the 
privileged  classes,  with  all  their  power  and 
money.  It  can  be  done,  but  it  can  be  done  only 
by  union  among  all  the  poor  of  every  class. 
Since  coming  to  your  State,  since  day  before 
yesterday,  my  mind  has  been  changed.  If  I 
thought — if  I  could  believe — '  As  he  paused 
he  caught  Ida's  eyes  shining  into  his,  and  at  the 
moment  the  one  thing  in  all  the  world  worth 
doing  was  to  follow  her  wish.  "  I  do  believe, 
and  I'm  with  you  from  this  time  forward."  He 
ended  there,  but  he  stood  for  a  moment  numb, 
and  tingling  with  emotion.  He  had  uttered  a 


A    SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  363 

resolution  which  changed  the  course  of  his 
life. 

The  people  seemed  to  realize  the  importance 
of  this  confession  on  the  part  of  the  speaker. 
There  was  a  vibrant  intensity  in  the  tone  of  his 
voice,  which  every  listener  felt,  and  they  broke 
out  in  wild  applause  as  he  abruptly  ended  and 
sat  down. 

Ida,  with  her  eyes  shining  and  wet,  reached 
forward  over  the  seat,  and  clasped  his  hand 
and  held  it.  "  Glorious !  Now  you're  with  us, 
heart  and  soul !  "  In  their  exaltation  it  did  not 
occur  to  either  of  them  what  a  strange  place 
this  little  schoolhouse  was  for  such  a  far-reach 
ing  compact. 

Out  under  the  coruscating  skies  again,  into 
the  crisp  air !  Bradley  turned  and  looked  back 
upon  the  little  schoolhouse,  packed  to  suffoca 
tion  ;  it  would  always  remain  a  memorable  place 
in  this  wide  land. 

"  Oh,  you've  done  them  good — more  than  you 
can  tell !  "  Ida  said. 

"  I  begin  to  believe  it  is  the  beginning  of  the 
greatest  reform  movement  in  history,"  he  said 
at  last.  "  They  are  searching  for  the  truth  ;  and 
whenever  any  great  body  of  men  search  for  the 
truth,  they  find  it,  and  the  finding  of  it  is  tre- 


364  A    SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

raendous.      Its  effect  reaches  every  quarter  of 
the  earth." 

They  mounted  to  their  perilous  seat  once 
more,  and  moved  out  into  the  night.  The  wind 
seemed  to  have  gone  down.  There  was  a  deep 
hush  in  the  air,  as  if  the  high  stars  listened  in 
their  illimitable  spaces.  The  plain  seemed  as 
lonely  and  as  unlighted  as  the  Arctic  Ocean. 
Even  the  barking  of  a  farm-yard  dog  had  a  wolf 
ish  and  savage  suggestiveness. 

They  rode  in  silence.  Ida  sighed  deeply.  At 
last  she  said :  "  It's  only  an  incident  with  us. 
We  go  back  to  our  pleasant  and  varied  lives  ; 
they  go  back  to  their  lonely  homes,  and  to  their 
bleak  corn-fields." 

"  But  you  have  given  them  something  to  hope 
for,  something  to  think  of,"  Bradley  said,  seek 
ing  to  comfort  her. 

"  Yes,  that  is  the  only  consolation  I  can  get 
out  of  it.  This  movement  has  come  into  their 
lives  like  a  new  religion.  It  is  a  new  religion 
— the  religion  of  humanity.  It  does  help 
them  to  forget  mud  and  rain  and  cold  and  mo 
notony." 
Jf 

Again  Bradley's  arm  seemed  necessary  to  her 
safety,  but  this  time  it  closed  around  her,  strong 
and  resolute,  yet  he  dared  not  say  a  word.  He 
was  not  sure  of  her.  It  seemed  impossible  that 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  365 

this  wonderful,  beautiful,  and  intellectual  woman 
should  care  for  him ;  and  yet,  when  he  was 
speaking,  her  eyes  had  pleaded  for  him. 

The  driver  talked  on  about  the  meeting-,  but 
his  passengers  were  silent.  Under  cover  of  lis 
tening  they  were  both  dreaming.  Bradley  was 
forecasting  his  life,  and  wondering  how  much 
she  would  make  up  of  it ;  wondering  if  she 
would  make  more  of  it  than  she  had  of  his  past 
life.  How  far  off  she  had  always  seemed  to  him, 
and  yet  she  had  always  been  a  part  of  his  inner 
life.  Now  she  sat  beside  him,  in  the  circle  of 
his  arm,  and  yet  she  seemed  hopelessly  out  of 
his  reach.  She  liked  him  as  a  friend  and  broth 
er  reformer — that  was  alt.  Besides,  he  had  no 
right  to  hope  now,  when  his  fortunes  had  be 
come  failures. 

She  was  thinking  of  him.  She  was  deeply 
gratified  to  think  he  had  entered  the  great  move 
ment,  and  that  she  had  been  instrumental  in  con 
verting  him.  Her  heart  warmed  to  him  strange 
ly  for  his  honesty  and  his  sincerity  ;  and  then  he 
was  so  fine  and  earnest  and  strong-limbed  !  The 
pressure  of  his  arm  at  her  side  moved  her,  and 
she  smiled  at  herself.  Unlike  Bradley,  she  was 
self-analytical  ;  she  knew  what  all  these  things 
meant. 

"  There's  the  station,"  the  driver  broke  out, 


366  A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

indicating  some  colored  lights  in  the  valley  be 
low  them.  "  We're  'most  home." 

At  his  word  a  vision  of  the  plain,  and  the  sig 
nificance  of  its  life,  rushed  over  Ida — the  serene 
majesty  of  the  stars,  the  splendor  and  unused 
wealth  of  the  prairies,  the  barriers  to  their  use, 
the  limitless  robbery  of  the  poor,  in  both  city 
and  country,  the  pathetic  liomcs  of  the  renter. 

"  Oh,  the  pathos,  the  tragedy  of  it  all !  Nature 
is  so  good  and  generous,  and  poverty  so  univer 
sal.  Can  it  be  remedied  ?  It  must  be  remedied. 
Every  thinking,  sympathizing  soul  must  help 
us." 

Bradley 's  voice  touched  Ida  deeply  as  he  said, 
slowly  :  "  Henceforward  I  shall  work  for  these 
people  and  all  who  suffer.  My  life  shall  be 
given  to  this  work." 

A  orreat,  sudden  resolution  flashed  into  Ida's 

O 

eyes.  She  lifted  her  face  to  his  and  laid  her 
hand  on  his  and  clasped  it  hard.  There  was  a 
little  pause,  in  which,  as  if  by  some  occult  sense, 
their  minds  read  each  other. 

"  We'll  work  together,  Bradley,"  she  said  ;  and 
the  driver  did  not  see  the  timid  caress  which 
Bradley  put  upon  her  lips  as  a  sign  of  his  un 
speakable  great  joy. 


A    SPOIL    OF   OFFICE.  367 


XXXII. 

CONCLUSION. 

ONE  winter  evening  Ida  and  Bradley  came 
out  of  their  apartments  on  Capitol  Hill  and 
struck  into  one  of  the  winding  walks  which  led 
downward  toward  the  city.  It  was  the  fourth 
week  of  the  "  short  session  "  of  Bradley 's  term 
of  office,  and  the  tenth  week  since  their  mar 
riage.  He  still  treated  Ida  with  a  certain  ti 
midity,  and  his  adoration  had  been  increased 
rather  than  diminished  by  his  daily  association 
with  her.  She  seemed  not  to  regret  her  com 
pact  with  him,  and  though  hardly  more  demon 
strative  than  he,  she  let  him  know  how  deeply 
she  trusted  and  loved  him. 

He  was  transformed  by  her  influence.  His 
life  had  regained  direction  and  certainty.  No 
rebuff  of  the  Speaker,  no  insult  of  a  member,  an 
gered  him.  He  was  always  in  his  seat,  ready, 
whenever  opportunity  offered,  to  do  battle 
against  wrong  knowing  that  Ida  was  watering 


368  A    SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

him.  Between  times  he  went  with  her  about  the 
city,  and  his  quiet  and  dignified  attentions  were 
a  source  of  the  keenest  pleasure  to  her,  he  was 
so  unobtrusively  serene  and  gentle  in  all  things. 
They  went  often  to  the  theatre.  They  walked 
a  great  deal,  and  they  were  already  marked 
figures  about  the  Hill,  they  were  both  so  tall 
and  strong  and  handsome. 

They  always  passed  through  the  Capitol 
grounds  on  their  way  down  town,  for  it  gave 
them  a  little  thrill  of  delight  to  pass  the  clumps 
of  trees.  On  this  evening  the  grounds  were  spe 
cially  beautiful.  A  heavy  fall  of  damp  snow  cov 
ered  every  twig  and  grass-blade.  They  walked 
slowly  down  the  winding  path  till  they  reached 
the  open  lawn  just  before  the  western  gate. 

"  Wait  a  moment,  Bradley,"  said  Ida.  They 
turned  to  look  back.  The  untracked,  unstained 
snow  swept  in  undulating  breadth  to  the  deep 
shadow  of  the  great  building,  which  rose  against 
the  sky  as  cold,  as  seamless,  as  if  it  were  cut 
from  solid  ice.  The  yellow  flare  of  lamps  about 
its  base  only  added  to  its  austere  majesty.  It 
was  at  its  best,  and  Ida  and  Bradley  looked  up 
at  it  in  silence,  hearing  the  jingle  of  bells,  the 
soft  voices  of  the  negro  drivers,  the  laughter  of 
children  coasting  on  the  mall,  and  the  muffled 
roll  of  the  "  carettes." 


A    SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  369 

"  It  is  beautiful  to-night,"  said  Ida  softly. 
"  The  building  is  like  a  cloud." 

"  Yes,  but  I  can't  think  of  it  without  its  an 
tithesis,  the  home  of  the  workingman  and  the 
hut  of  the  poor  negro,"  Bradley  replied. 

They  moved  on  again  in  silence.  Darky 
newsboys,  shivering  with  cold,  met  them  at 
every  corner,  holding  out  to  them  in  their  stiff 
ened  little  claws  their  "  Styah  papahs." 

The  avenue  swarmed  with  sight-seers,  mainly 
of  the  West  and  South.  Every  hotel  door  was 
like  the  vent  to  a  hive — black  with  comers  and 
goers.  The  old  man  with  the  cough  medicine 
met  them  again.  They  could  repeat  his  sing 
song  cry  now,  and  with  a  little  impulse  of  fun- 
making  Ida  joined  in  with  him  :  "Doc-ter  Fergus- 
son  s  double-ex  selly-brated,  Philadelphia  cough  drops, 
for  coughs  or  colds,  sore  throat  or  hoarseness ;  five 
cents  a  package" 

They  soon  struck  into. the  gayer  streams  of 
people  making  their  way  towards  the  theatre ; 
and  when  they  took  their  seats  in  the  crowded 
balcony,  poverty  was  lost  sight  of. 

"  There !  who  says  this  is  not  a  bright  and 
gay  world  ?  "  said  Ida.  "  No  poor,  no  aged,  no 
infirm,  no  cold  or  hungry  people  here." 

"  This  is  the  bright  side  of  the  moon,"  replied 
Bradley  gravely.  They  looked  around,  and 


370  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE. 

studied  the  people  with  a  mental  comparison 
with  other  throngs  they  had  seen  on  the  far 
prairies  of  Kansas  and  Iowa.  There  were  girls 
with  eyes  full  of  liquid  light,  with  dainty  bon 
nets  nestling  on  their  soft  hair;  their  faces  were 
like  petals  of  flowers  ;  the  curves  of  their  chins 
were  more  beautiful  than  chalices  of  lilies ;  their 
dresses,  soft,  shapely,  of  exquisite  tones  and 
texture,  draped  their  perfect  bodies.  Their 
slender  fingers  held  gold-and-pearl  opera  glasses. 
The  young  men  who  sat  beside  them  wore  the 
latest  fashions  in  clothing  cut  from  the  finest 
fabrics.  Heavy  men  of  brutal  bulk  slouched  be 
side  their  dainty  daughters,  the  purple  blotches 
on  their  bloated  and  lumpy  faces  showing  how 
politics  or  business  had  debauched  and  under 
mined  them.  Everywhere  was  the  rustle  of 
drapery  and  soft,  musical  speech.  All  that  was 
lacking  in  "  the  round  up "  at  Chiquita  was 
here — shining,  fragrant,  and  rustling. 

The  curtain  rose  upon  the  fair  in  Nottingham 
shire  ;  and  with  the  sweet  imaginative  music  as 
solvent  and  setting,  the  gay  lads  and  lassies  of 
far  romance  sang  and  danced  under  the  trees  in 
garments  upon  which  the  rain  had  never  fallen, 
and  unflecked  with  dust.  Knights  in  splendid 
dress  of  silver  and  green,  with  jewelled  swords 


A  SPOIL    OF  OFFICE.  371 

and  gay  sashes,  came  and  went,  while  the  merry 
peasant  youths  circled  and  sang  task-free  and 
sin-free. 

The  scene  changed  to  Sherwood  Forest ;  and 
there,  in  the  land  of  Robin  Hood,  where  snow 
never  falls,  where  rains  never  slant  through  the 
shuddering  leaves,  the  jocund  foresters  met  to 
sing  and  drink  October  ale.  There  came  Little 
John  and  Will  Scarlet  and  Alan-a-Dale  in  glit 
tering  garments,  with  smooth,  fair  brows  and 
tuneful  voices,  to  circle  and  sing.  Fadeless  and 
untarnished  was  each  magnificent  cloak  and 
doublet,  slashed  with  green  or  purple  ;  straight 
and  fair  and  supple  was  every  back  and  limb. 
No  marks  of  toil  anywhere,  no  lines  of  care,  no 
hopeless  hunger,  no  threatening  task ;  nothing 
to  do  but  to  sing  and  dance  and  drink  after 
the  hunt  among  the  delightfully  dry  and  com 
modious  forest  wilds  —  a  glorious,  free  life! 
A  beautiful,  child-like,  dream-like,  pagan-like 
life! 

As  they  looked,  and  while  the  music,  tuneful, 
soft,  and  persuasive,  called  to  them,  a  shadow 
fell  upon  Ida.  That  world  of  care-free,  change 
less  youth,  that  world  of  love  and  comradeship, 
threw  into  painful  relief  the  actual  world  from 
which  she  came.  It  brought  up  with  terrible 
force  the  low  cottage  in  the  moaning  pine  forest 


372  A  SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

of  Wisconsin,  or  the  equally  lonely  cabin  on  the 
Kansas  plain. 

When  the  curtain  fell,  they  rose  and  went 
sombrely  out.  When  they  reached  the  street, 
Ida  pressed  Bradley 's  arm. 

"  Oh,  it  was  beautiful,  painfully  beautiful !  Do 
you  know  what  1  mean  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  replied  Bradley  simply. 

"  O  Bradley  !  if  we  only  could  discover  a  land 
like  that,  to  which  all  the  poor  could  go  at  once 
and  be  happy — a  land  of  song  and  plenty,  with 
no  greed  and  no  grinding  need  !" 

"  Yes,"  Bradley  sighed,  "  But  I  am  afraid  you 
and  I  will  never  again  taste  anything  sweet. 
There  will  always  be  a  dash  of  bitter  in  it." 

"  Yes,  we  were  born  to  feel  others'  cares.  The 
worst  of  it  is,  we  could  have  that  land  in  Amer 
ica  if  we  only  would.  Our  forefathers  thought 
it  was  coming,  but  instead  of  it " —  She  did  not 
finish,  and  they  walked  on  in  deep  thought. 

"  Yes,"  said  Bradley,  "  we  could  have  it ;  but 
the  way  is  long  and  weary,  and  thousands  and 
millions  of  us  must  die  on  the  road,  I  am  afraid." 

As  they  walked  on,  Bradley  could  hear  the 
occasional  deep-sighing  breath  of  the  heart-bur 
dened  woman  beside  him.  Again  they  passed 
by  the  cold  and  stately  palace  of  the  Govern 
ment,  lifting  its  dome  against  the  glittering  sky. 


A   SPOIL   OF  OFFICE.  373 

The  moon  had  swung  high  into  the  air,  giving  a 
whiter  tinge  to  the  blue,  and  dimming  the  bril 
liancy  of  the  stars,  but  the  crusted  snow  sparkled 
like  a  cloth  of  diamonds,  and  each  flake-burdened 
branch  took  on  unearthly  charm.  It  was  very 
still  and  peaceful  and  remote,  as  if  no  city  were 
near.  They  stood  in  silence  until  Ida  shivered 
with  cold  ;  then  without  a  word  Bradley  touched 
her  arm,  and  they  walked  on. 

When  they  entered  their  room,  Ida  sat  down 
in  a  chair  by  the  fire  without  removing  her 
things;  and  when  Bradley  came  in  from  the 
hall  she  still  sat  there,  her  eyes  shaded  by  her 
hat,  her  chin  resting  on  her  palm,  her  gloves  in 
her  lap.  He  knew  her  too  well  to  interrupt 
her,  and  took  a  seat  near  her,  waiting  for  her  to 
speak. 

At  last  she  turned  abruptly,  and  said,  "  Brad 
ley,  I'm  going  home." 

It  made  him  catch  his  breath.  "  Oh,  no,  I 
can't  let  you  do  that,  Ida." 

"  Yes,  I  must  go  ;  I  can't  stay  here.  That 
play  to-night  has  wakened  my  sleeping  con 
science.  I  must  go  back  to  the  West." 

"  But,  Ida,  you've  only  been  here  four  weeks; 
I  don't  see  why  " 

"  Because  my  work  calls  me.  I  am  cursed. 
I  can't  enjoy  this  life  any  more,  because  I  can't 


374  4    SPOIL   OF  OFFICE. 

forget  those  poor  souls  on  the  lonely  farms 
grinding  out  their  lives  in  gloomy  toil ;  I  must 
go  back  and  help  them.  I  feel  like  a  thief,  to  be 
living  in  this  beautiful  room  and  hearing  these 
plays  and  concerts,  when  they  are  shut  out  from 
them." 

Bradley  experienced  a  sudden  impulse  of 
rebellion.  "  But  we  have  done  our  best, 
haven't  we?" 

"  Yes,  but  we  must  continue  to  do  our  best 
right  along  ;  the  battle  is  only  half  won  yet,  and 
I've  enlisted  to  the  end.  Besides,"  she  said,  look 
ing  up  at  him  with  a  faint  smile,  "  I've  got  to  go 
right  into  your  district  and  pave  the  way  for 
your  re-election.  If  you  expect  to  do  your  part 
here,  1  must  do  my  part  in  electing  you."  She 
looked  old  and  care-worn.  "  You  know  how 
much  good  it  does  the  poor  wives  and  mothers 
to  meet  me  and  to  hear  me.  Now,  we  mustn't 
be  selfish,  dear.  We  must  not  forget  that  neither 
of  us  was  born  to  idleness.  I  have  been  very 
happy  here  with  you,  but  there  is  something  of 
John  the  Baptist  in  me  :  I  must  go  forth  and 
utter  the  word — the  word  of  the  Lord." 

They  fell  into  silence  again,  and  Bradley,  fac 
ing  the  fire,  felt  a  burning  pain  in  his  staring 
eyes.  Her  presence  had  been  so  inexpressibly 
sweet  and  helpful  he  could  not  bear  to  let  her 


A  SPOIL   OF  OFFICE  375 

go.  And  yet  he  understood  her  feeling.  Slowly 
through  years  of  thought  he  had  grown,  till  now 
he  was  level  with  her  altruistic  conception  of 
life.  When  he  spoke  again  it  was  in  his  appar 
ently  passionless  way. 

"All  right,  Ida.  We  enlisted  for  the  whole 
war."  He  was  able  to  smile  a  little  as  he  looked 
up  at  her.  "  My  congressional  career  will  soon 
end,  anyhow." 

She  rose  and  came  to  him  and  put  her  arm 
about  his  neck.  "  As  a  matter  of  fact,  you'll 
work  better  without  me,  Bradley,  and  your  pub 
lic  career  must  not  end  for  many  years.  You 
must  keep  your  place  for  my  sake  as  well  as  for 
the  sake  of  the  wronged — and  also  for  the  sake 
of — of  our  children,  Bradley."  Her  voice  grew 
tremulous  toward  the  end,  and  a  look  of  singular 
beauty  came  into  her  face. 

Bradley  looked  up  at  her  with  a  questioning, 
eager  light  in  his  eyes,  then  his  long  left  arm 
encircled  her  like  a  shield  and  drew  her  to  his 
knee. 

"  All  that  I  am  I  owe  to  you.  Now,  nothing 
can  defeat  me  !  " 

THE  END. 


25 


THE   SUCCESSOR  TO  "  LOOKING  BACKWARD." 

Rquality. 

BY    EDWARD    BELLAMY. 
I2mo.     Cloth,  $1.25. 


A  FTER  years  of  preparation  Mr.  Bellamy  now  puts  forward 
a  work  which  will  command  universal  attention.  The  new 
book  is  larger  and  more  comprehensive  than  "  Looking  Back 
ward."  The  scene  is  the  same — that  is  to  say,  the  world  of  the 
twentieth  century — and  the  same  characters  reappear.  But  while 
the  new  book  tells  us  much  that  is  fresh  about  the  institutions  of 
the  world  of  to-morrow,  its  especial  purpose,  as  distinguished 
from  that  of  "  Looking  Backward,"  is  to  account  for  these  institu 
tions  by  explaining  not  only  a  righteousness  and  reason,  but  like 
wise  the  course  of  historical  evolution  by  which  they  were  born 
out  of  the  very  different  order  of  things  existing  to-day.  In  this 
part  of  his  work  the  author  has  much  to  say  of  the  meaning  of  the 
events  of  our  own  times,  which  he  links  with  the  future  by  predic 
tions  of  changes  now  close  upon  us.  The  title,  "  Equality,"  is  well 
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recently  the  demand  for  literature  dealing  with  sociological  ques 
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*~/     Illustrated. 

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"  A  well-written  novel,  with  well-depicted  characters  and  well-chosen  scenes."  — 
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"A  sweet,  tender,  pure,  and  lovely  story."  —  Sufaio  Commercial. 


ONE   WHO  LOOKED    ON.     12  mo.     Cloth, 

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"One  of  the  most  remarkable  and  powerful  of  the  year's  contributions,  worthy  to 
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"One  of  the  rare  books  which  can  be  read  with  great  pleasure  and  recommended 
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"The  story  is  an  intensely  human  one,  and  it  is  deligh-.fullv  to!d.  .  .  .  The  author 
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I 


'NTO     THE     HIGHWAYS     AND     HEDGES. 

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evolved." — London  A  thenxitm. 

"'Into  the  Highways  and  Hedees'  is  a  book  not  of  promise  only,  but  of  high 
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ZEIT-GEIST.      By  L.   DOUG  ALL,  author  of 

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\fEKL.  A  Tale  of  the  New  York  Ghetto.  By  A.  CAHAN. 
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the  author  depicts  with  marvelous  success." — Boston  Transcript. 

"The  reader  will  become  deeply  interested  in  Mr.  Cahan's  graphic  presentation  of 
ghetto  life  in  New  York." — Minneapolis  Journal. 

"A  strong,  quaint  story. " — Detroit  Tribune. 

"  Every  feature  of  the  book  bears  the  stamp  of  truth.  .  .  .  Undoubtedly  'Yekl' 
has  never  been  excelled  as  a  picture  of  the  distinctive  life  of  the  New  York  ghetto." — 
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HE  SENTIMENTAL  SEX.  By  GERTRUDE  WAR- 

DEN.     I2mo.     Cloth,  $1.00. 

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ignored." — New  York  Commercial  Advertiser. 

"There  is  a  well-wrought  mystery  in  the  story  and  some  surprises  that  preserve 
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Boston  Courier. 

"  An  uncommonly  knowing  little  book,  which  keeps  a  good  grip  on  the  reader  up  to 
the  last  page.  .  .  .  The  author's  method  of  handling  the  plot  is  adroit  and  original."— 
Rochester  Herald. 

"Miss  Warden  has  worked  out  her  contrasts  very  strikingly,  and  tells  her  story 
in  a  cleverly  flippant  way,  which  keeps  the  reader  on  the  qui  vive  for  the  cynical  but 
bright  sayings  she  has  interspersed." — Detroit  Free  Press. 

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THE   STORY  OF  THE   WEST   SERIES. 
Edited  by  Kipley  Hitchcock. 

"  There  is  a  vast  extent  of  territory  lying  between  the  Missouri  River  and  the  Pacific 
toast  which  has  barely  been  skimmed  over  so  far.  That  the  conditions  of  life  therein 
are  undergoing  changes  litile  short  of  marvelous  will  be  understood  when  one  recalls 
the  fact  that  the  first  white  male  child  born  in  Kansas  is  still  living  there;  and  Kansas 
is  by  no  meajis  one  of  the  newer  States.  Revolutionary  indeed  has  been  the  upturning 
of  the  old  condition  of  affairs,  and  little  remains  thereof,  and  lefs  will  remain  as  each 
year  goes  by,  until  presently  there  will  be  only  tradition  of  the  Sioux  and  Comanches, 
the  co.vboy  life,  the  wild  horse,  and  the  antelope.  Histories,  many  of  them,  have  been 
written  about  the  Western  country  alluded  to,  but  most  if  not  practically  all  by  outsiders 
who  knew  not  personally  that  life  of  kaleidoscopic  allurement.  But  ere  it  shall  have 
vanished  forever  we  are  likely  to  have  truthful,  complete,  and  charming  portrayals  01 
it  produced  by  men  who  actually  knew  the  life  and  have  the  power  to  describe  it."  — 
Henry  Edward  Rood,  in  the  Mail  and  Express. 

NOW  READY. 

E  STOR  Y  OF  THE  INDIAN.  By  GEORGE 
BIRD  GRINNELL,  author  of  "  Pawnee  Hero  Stories,"  "  Black- 
foot  Lodge  Tales,"  etc.  I2mo.  Cloth,  $1.50. 

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sustained  interest,  it  is  at  the  same  time  characterized  by  a  grace  of  style  which  is  rarely 
to  be  looked  for  in  such  a  work,  and  which  adds  not  a  little  to  the  charm  of  it."— 
London  Daily  Chronicle. 

"  Only  an  author  qualified  by  personal  experience  could  offer  us  a  profitable  study 
of  a  race  so  alien  from  our  own  as  is  the  Indian  in  thought,  feeling,  and  culture.  Only 
long  association  with  Indians  can  enable  a  white  man  measurably  to  comprehend  their 
thoughts  and  enter  into  their  feelings.  Such  association  has  been  Mr.  Grinneli's."  — 
New  York  Sun. 


STORY   OF    THE   MINE.      By  CHARLES 
HOWARD  SHINN.     Illustrated.     I2mo.    Cloth,  $1.50. 

"  The  author  has  written  a  book,  not  alone  full  of  information,  but  replete  with  the 
true  romance  of  the  American  mine."  —  New  York  Times. 

"  Few  chapters  of  recent  history  are  more  fascinating  than  that  which  Mr.  Shinn 
has  told  in  '  The  Story  of  the  Mine.'  "—The  Outlook. 

"Both  a  history  and  a  romance.  .  .  .  Highly  interesting,  new,  and  thrilling."— 
Philadelphia  Inquirer. 

IN  PREPARATION. 

The  Story  of  the  Trapper.     By  GILBERT  PARKER. 

The  Story  of  the  Cowboy.     By  E.  HOUGH. 

The  Story  of  the  Soldier.     By  Capt.  J.  McB.  STEMBEL,  U.  S.  A. 

The  Story  of  the  Explorer. 

The  Story  of  the  Railroad. 


New  York  :    D.  APPLETON  &  CO.,  72  Fifth  Avenue. 


D.   APPLETON  AND  COMPANY'S  PUBLICATIONS. 

TN  JOYFUL  RUSSIA.  By  JOHN  A.  LOGAN,  Jr. 
With  50  Illustrations  in  color  and  black  and  white.  I2mo. 
Cloth,  $3.50. 

"Of  extreme  interest  from  beginning  to  end.  Mr.  Logan  has  animation  of  style, 
good  spirits,  a  gift  of  agreeable  and  enlivening  expression,  and  a  certain  charm  which 
may  be  called  companionableness.  To  travel,  with  him  must  have  been  a  particular 
pleasure.  He  has  sense  of  humor,  a  way  of  getting  over  rough  places,  and  understand 
ing  of  human  nature.  There  is  not  a  dull  chapter  in  his  book." — New  York  Times. 

"  Mr.  Logan  has  written  of  the  things  which  he  saw  with  a  fullness  that  leaves  noth 
ing  to  be  desired  for  their  comprehension;  with  an  eye  that  was  quick  to  perceive  their 
novelty,  their  picturesriueness,  their  national  significance,  and  with  a  mind  not  made 
up  beforehand — frankly  open  to  new  impressions,  alert  in  its  perceptions,  reasonable 
in  its  judgment,  ma.ily,  independent,  and,  like  its  environments,  filled  with  holiday 
enthusiasm." — New  York  Mail  and  Express. 

"No  more  fresh,  original,  and  convincing  picture  of  the  Russian  people  and  Russian 
life  has  appeared.  .  .  .  The  author  has  described  picturesquely  and  in  much  detail 
whatever  he  has  touched  upon.  .  .  .  Few  books  of  travel  are  at  once  so  readable  and 
so  informing,  and  not  many  are  so  successfully  illustrated  ;  for  the  pictures  tell  a  story 
of  their  own,  while  they  also  interpret  to  the  eye  a  vivid  narrative." — Boston  Herald. 

"A  chronicle  of  impressions  gathered  during  a  brief  and  thoroughly  enjoyed  holi 
day  by  a  man  with  eyes  wide  open  and  senses  alert  to  see  nnd  hear  new  things.  Thor 
oughly  successful  and  well  worth  perusal.  .  .  .  There  will  be  found  within  its  pages 
plenty  to  instruct  and  entertain  the  reader." — Brooklyn  Eagle. 

"  The  book  is  a  historical  novelty;  and  nowadays  a  more  valuable  distinction  can 
not  be  attached  to  a  book.  .  .  .  No  other  book  of  travels  of  late  years  is  so  unalterably 
interesting." — Boston  Journal. 

"Mr.  Logan's  narrative  is  spirited  in  tone  and  color.  .  .  .  A  volume  that  is  enter 
taining  and  amusing,  and  not  unworthy  to  be  called  instructive.  The  style  is  at  all 
times  lively  and  spirited,  and  full  of  good  humor." — Philadelphia  Press. 

"  Mr.  Logan  has  a  quick  eye,  a  ready  pen,  a  determination  to  make  the  most  of 
opportunities,  and  his  book  is  very  interesting.  ...  He  has  made  a  thoroughly  read 
able  book  in  which  history  and  biography  are  brought  in  to  give  one  a  good  general  im 
pression  of  affairs." — Hartford  Post. 

"  Mr.  Logan  has  presented  in  attractive  language,  reenforced  by  many  beautiful 
photographs,  a  most  entertaining  narrative  of  his  personal  experiences,  besides  a  daz 
zling  panorama  of  the  coronation  ceremonies.  .  .  .  Read  without  prejudice  on  the  sub 
ject  of  the  Russian  mode  of  government,  the  book  is  unusually  able,  instructive,  and 
entertaining." — l>ost»t  Globe. 

"  Mr.  Logan  departs  from  the  usual  path,  in  telling  in  clear,  simple,  good  style  about 
the  intimate  life  of  the  Russian  people." — Baltimore  Sun. 


D.  APPLETON  AND   COMPANY,  NEW  YORK. 


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D.   APPLETON  &   CO.'S  PUBLICATIONS. 

HE  BEGINNERS  OF  A  NATION.  A  History 
of  the  Source  and  Rise  of  the  Earliest  English  Settlements  in 
America,  with  Special  Reference  to  the  Life  and  Character  of 
the  People.  The  first  volume  in  A  History  of  Life  in  the 
United  States.  By  EDWARD  EGGLESTON.  Small  Svo.  Cloth, 
gilt  top,  uncut,  with  Maps,  $1.50. 

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literary  attractiveness,  and  we  fancy  that  many  to  whom  its  scholarly  value  will  not  ap 
peal  will  read  the  volume  with  interest  and  delight." — Neva  York  £vening  rest. 

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is  a  great  theme  the  author  has  taken  up,  and  he  grasps  it  with  the  confidence  of  a 
master." — New  York  Times. 

"Mr.  Eggleston's  'Beginners'  is  unique.  No  similar  historical  study  has,  to  our 
knowledge,  ever  been  done  in  the  same  way.  Mr.  Eggleston  is  a  reliable  reporter  of 
facts;  but  he  is  also  an  exceedingly  keen  critic.  He  writes  history  without  the  effort 
to  merge  the  critic  in  the  historian.  His  sense  of  humor  is  never  dormant  He  renders 
some  of  the  dullest  passages  in  colonial  annals  actually  amusing  by  his  witty  treatment 
of  them.  He  finds  a  laugh  for  his  readers  where  most  of  his  predecessors  have  found 
yawns.  And  with  all  this  he  does  not  sacrifice  the  dignity  of  history  for  an  instant" — 
Boston  Saturday  Evening  Gazette. 

"  The  delightful  style,  the  clear  flow  of  the  narrative,  the  philosophical  tone,  and 
the  able  analysis  of  men  and  events  will  commend  Mr.  Eggleston's  work  to  earnest 
students." — Philadelphia  Public  Ledger. 

"The  work  is  worthy  of  careful  reading,  not  only  because  of  the  author's  ability  as  a 
literary  artist,  but  because  of  his  conspicuous  proficiency  in  interpreting  the  causes  of 
and  changes  in  American  life  and  character." — Boston  Journal. 

"  It  is  noticeable  that  Mr.  Eggleston  has  followed  no  beaten  track,  but  has  drawn 
his  own  conclusions  as  to  the  early  period,  and  they  differ  from  the  generally  received 
version  not  a  little.  The  book  is  stimulating  and  will  prove  of  great  value  to  the  stu 
dent  of  history." — Minneapolis  Journal. 

"A  very  interesting  as  well  as  a  valuable  book.  ...  A  distinct  advance  '.ipon  most 
that  has  been  written,  particularly  of  the  settlement  of  New  England." — Xcwark 
Advertiser. 

"  One  of  the  most  important  books  of  the  yenr.  It  is  a  work  of  art  as  well  as  ot 
historical  science,  and  its  distinctive  purpose  is  to  give  an  insight  into  the  real  life  and 
character  of  people.  .  .  .  The  author's  style  is  charming,  and  the  history  is  fully  as  inter 
esting  as  a  novel." — Brooklyn  Standard-Union. 

"  The  value  of  Mr.  Eggleston's  work  is  in  that  it  is  really  a  history  of 'life,'  not 
merely  a  record  of  events.  .  .  .  The  comprehensive  purpose  of  his  volume  has  been 
excellently  performed.  The  book  is  eminently  readable." — Philadelphia  Times. 


New  York  :  D.  APPLETON  &  CO.,  72  Fifth  Avenue. 


D.   APPLETON  &  CO.'S  PUBLICATIONS. 

RUDYARD  KIPLING'S  NEW  BOOK. 

HE  SEVEN  SEAS.  A  new  volume  of  poems  by 
RUDYARD  KIPLING,  author  of  "  Many  Inventions,"  "  Barrack- 
Room  Ballads,"  etc.  I2mo.  Cloth,  $1.50  ;  half  calf,  $3.00  ; 
morocco,  $5.00. 

"  The  spirit  and  method  of  Kipling's  fresh  and  virile  song  have  taken  the  Knglish 
reading  world.  .  .  .  When  we  turn  to  the  larger  portion  of '  The  Seven  Seas,'  how 
imaginative  it  is,  how  impassioned,  how  superbly  rhythmic  and  sonorous!  .  .  .  The 
ring  and  diction  of  this  verse  add  new  elements  to  our  song.  .  .  .  The  true  laureate 
of  Greater  Britain." — E.  C.  Stedman,  in  the  Book  Buyer. 

"  The  most  original  poet  who  has  appeared  in  his  generation.  .  .  .  His  is  the  lusti 
est  voice  now  lifted  in  the  world,  the  clearest,  the  bravest,  with  the  fewest  false  notes 
in  it.  ...  I  do  not  see  why,  in  reading  his  book,  we  should  not  put  ourselves  in  the 
presence  of  a  great  poet  again,  and  consent  to  put  off  our  mourning  for  the  high  ones 
lately  dead."—  IV.  O.  Howelh. 

"  The  new  poems  of  Mr.  Rudyard  Kipling  have  all  the  spirit  and  swing  of  their 
predecessors.  Throughout  they  are  instinct  with  the  qualities  which  arc  essentially 
his,  and  which  have  made,  and  seem  likely  to  keep,  for  him  his  position  and  wide 
popularity." — London  Times. 

"  He  has  the  very  heart  of  movement,  for  the  lack  of  which  no  metrical  science 
cculd  atone.  He  goes  far  because  he  can." — London  Academy. 

" '  The  Seven  Seas '  is  the  most  remarkable  book  of  verse  that  Mr.  Kipling  has 
given  us.  Here  the  human  sympathy  is  broader  and  deeper,  the  patriotism  heartier 
and  fuller,  the  intellectual  and  spiritual  insight  keener,  the  command  of  the  literary 
vehicle  more  complete  and  sure,  than  in  any  previous  verse  work  by  the  author.  The 
volume  pulses  with  power — power  often  rough  and  reckless  in  expression,  but  invariably 
conveying  the  effect  intended.  There  is  scarcely  a  line  which  does  not  testify  to  the 
strong  individuality  of  the  writer." — London  Globe. 

"  If  a  man  holding  this  volume  in  his  hands,  with  all  its  extravagance  and  its  savage 
realism,  is  not  aware  that  it  is  animated  through  and  through  with  indubitable  genius — 
then  he  must  be  too  much  the  slave  of  the  conventional  and  the  ordinary  to  understand 
that  Poetry  metamorphoses  herself  in  many  diverse  forms,  and  that  its  one  sovereign 
anJ  indefeasible  justification  is — truth." — London  Daily  Telegraph. 

"  '  The  Seven  Seas  '  is  packed  with  inspiration,  with  humor,  with  pathos,  and  with 
the  <>ld  unequaled  insight  into  the  mind  of  the  rank  and  file." — London  Daily  Chronicle. 

"  Mr.  Kipling's  '  The  Seven  Seas '  is  a  distinct  advance  upon  his  characteristic 
lines.  The  surpassing  strength,  the  almost  violent  originality,  the  glorious  swish  and 
swing  of  his  lines — all  are  there  in  increased  measure.  .  .  .  The  book  is  a  marvel  of 
originality  and  genius — a  brand-new  landmark  in  the  history  of  English  letters."— 
Chicago  Tribune. 

"  In  '  The  Seven  Seas'  are  displayed  all  of  Kipling's  prodigious  gifts.  .  .  .  Whoever 
roads  '  The  Seven  Seas '  will  be  vexed  by  the  desire  to  read  it  again.  The  average 
charm  of  the  gifts  alone  is  irresistible." — Boston  Journal. 


New  York :  D.  APPLETON  &  CO.,  72  Fifth  Avenue. 


IX  APPLETON  &  OCX'S  PUBLICATIONS. 

'AGES  AND  CAPITAL,  An  Examination  of 
the  Wages  Faad  Doctrine.  By  F.  W.  TJUG^C*  Professor  of 
FoQuical  EcoaocoT ia  Harvxtd  PairoaJtf,  aadnr  of  -Tariff 
HBtayof  the  Uaited  States  "mad  -The  SOicr  .SaTaatioa  ia 
tW  Uaitcd  States."  uaw  doth.  |a.5Q. 

fiaad  Oeorj.*—  Tfa 

: :  7>"       M-   r'    "  - 


: 

^  Tie  book  w9be 


-..,    ...-„-     ,    ,-     --.-,-,-- 


NevTotk:  D.  APPLETON  ft  CO,  72  Fitt 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY,  LOS  ANGELES 

COLLEGE  LIBRARY 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


COL.  LIB. 


3  67*' 

DEC  2  0  1967 

too  COL 


JAM  9 


Bii  u  wuu 


AUG  5     1968 

Novi6'eo'i4bAY 


Book  alip-10m-5,'58(372t7s4)4280 


College 
Library 


UCLA-College  Library 

PS  1732  S78  1897 


L  005  692  843  5 


PS 

1732 
878 
1897 


-  SOUTHERN  REGKWL  LIBRARY 


001199049     6 


